You And I 3
by Draven Star
Summary: Vader and Amidala want Leia to marry Rafael, but she meets someone else. Luke and Mara start to hunt two new Jedi.
1. Default Chapter

You And I 3 

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the original characters or dialogue from the Star Wars movies.

Obviously, don't read this unless you've read the first two You And I stories. This series is AU. Don't leave me a review about stuff that's "wrong" and "inaccurate". I use o' clock times in my stories, just because it's easier.

Draven Star

**Chapter One**

Leia Vader sat down on the white couch in her bedroom, looking at the tabloid magazines that their maid, Sabé, had brought over yesterday. Without even going through them, she knew that each one's cover mentioned her engagement, which had been announced two days ago.

She opened Naboo News Weekly. There was a small picture of her and Rafael Aryies, without much more information about the engagement. Almost all of the galaxy's periodicals would avoid pestering her and her friends about wedding details.

That was a relief. The magazines' staffs were even cautious about what pictures they published. A few months ago, a photographer for the Imperial City Scene had "disappeared" after sneaking onto a private section of a Yavin Two beach and getting a picture of Empress Alana in a bikini.

"May I join you?" Darth Amidala asked, entering the room.

"Of course," Leia answered as her mother sat next to her.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"I sense it. What's bothering you - other than being worried about Mara and the baby?"

"Nothing," Leia repeated. "That's just it. I just don't feel...anything..."

"About your wedding?" asked Amidala. "Leia, you made a deal with Vader and I. We gave you a month - more than that - to pick someone to marry, and you didn't. You know that we could have gotten any boy that you wanted."

"I know," Leia admitted, "but I don't want to ask Daddy to capture someone for me, and force them to marry me."

"That does sound pathetic, but what's wrong with Rafael? You are both Sith, and you go together perfectly."

"I guess."

Amidala patted Leia's arm. "I think that you'll be happy with him."

Leia made a smile that was not fake. Rafael was handsome, and he liked her. She knew that Falleen could use pheromones to attract and seduce others, but Rafael swore he had never used his to persuay Leia. She wasn't weak enough, and he wanted her to genuinely like him.

* * *

Darth Vader and Luke both sensed something. Luke angrily returned to the room that Mara was in. His father didn't follow him inside.

Mara was already crying, though she did not seem to be injured. For now, Luke ignored the two doctors in the room.

"The baby is..." his wife said softly, whimpering.

"...dead," Luke finished, looking at the doctors now. "Which of you is responsible for this?"

"My P-Prince," one of them answered nervously, "there w-were c-complications."

Luke sensed his dishonesty, and raised his hand. The man reached for his throat.

The other doctor hesitated, then said, "Your Highness, he..."

"What?"

"I-I've never seen him here before. He was alone with the baby for a few minutes...he could have hurt it..."

"And you allowed it."

"Luke, it's not his fault," said Mara, wiping her face.

"Who are you?" he asked the doctor he was choking, but by now, the man couldn't answer. He fell to the floor.

"Leave," Luke added, looking at the other doctor.

The man quickly bowed and left the room.

* * *

The Emperor and Empress were both inside their castle's throne room when Vader and Luke entered. Alana greeted them with her teasing smile. During the last nineteen-and-a-half years, her warmth toward Amidala had faded. She was strictly on her husband's side.

"You're here earlier than expected," she said.

After a second, she was puzzled. Neither Vader nor Luke bowed to her and Palpatine.

"Something is troubling you, Lord Vader," said Palpatine, almost taunting. "Do tell us."

Vader turned on his lightsaber before the Emperor finished the sentence.


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

During the next few days, Leia went over to Mara and Luke's often to stay with her sister-in-law. Mara felt better soon, and Leia had an excuse to get away from wedding planning. Rafael had wanted to take her to Alderaan, so that they could celebrate their engagement alone, but she told him that she didn't want to go.

"Something is bothering you," Darth Vader said to his wife one night, while they were taking a walk. They usually didn't go far from the house, and with the protection of the forest and the darkness, they didn't have to hide their presences unless they heard someone approaching.

"Empress Alana," Darth Amidala admitted. "Why do you think she turned against me? She used to like me. I didn't tell Palpatine when she accidently told me that I am their granddaughter."

"He changed her mind about you," said Vader. He had never trusted their master. He hadrefused to let Leia and Luke see their great-grandparents often. The twins were never angry at him. Neither had seemed to like Alana or Palpatine very much.

Amidala was quiet, but was not upset. A few minutes later, the house came into view. Leia wasn't there; she had probably decided to stay with Luke and Mara tonight.

* * *

Darth Vader discovered Ryoo Naberrie a couple of days later. He was looking at a picture of Lando Calrissian that one of his agents had taken. Lando appeared to be flirting with a young human woman, who had dark brown hair that went just past her shoulders. She was wearing a sleeveless yellow shirt and matching pants. A small dark, cylinder-shaped thing was attached to her white belt.

Vader couldn't tell if it was a lightsaber, but the woman seemed faintly familiar. He gave the picture back to the agent.

"Find out who the girl is," he said.

"Yes, My Lord."

* * *

Leia was ten or fifteen minutes late, but Rafael was not annoyed. She looked beautiful as she entered the restaurant's private dining room, in a long-sleeved, knee-length white dress.

Once their guards left, Rafael hugged her, then kissed her cheek. He felt a flicker of nervousness in her. She was not completely happy about the wedding, like he was. He had secretly loved Leia for a long time. He knew she sensed his feelings for her, and that made her a little more hesitant. He was barely her friend. She had only recently started to see him often, ever since her parents had told her that she was marrying him if she didn't find someone on her own.

"Thank you," she said as he pulled out her chair for her. As she sat down, two waiters came into the room.

When they were alone, Leia and Rafael both studied their plates for a moment, neither sensing anything dangerous in the food.

"I am sorry that we couldn't go to Alderaan," Leia told her fiancée, even though he'd sense her dishonesty.

"How is Mara?" he replied.

"Much better. We looked at a few gowns yesterday."

"We still haven't chosen a location for the wedding."

"I know," said Leia, sounding sort of like a child that was trying to avoid taking nasty-tasting medicine.

A spark of frustration rose in Rafael, but he patiently pushed it away. He would make her want to be with him.


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

Mara went inside her father-in-law's chambers on the _Executor_. She had felt much better during the past two days, and could not stand resting in bed more, so Luke had finally let her find more information on the Naberrie girls. She was a pretty eighteen-year-old, and therefore seemed less suspicious when spying.

She briefly smiled to herself as she sat down on the black leather couch, between Vader and Luke. Two years ago, Vader gave Mara Jade to Luke as a gift; his first personal agent. Luke had quickly been impressed with her work, and after almost six months, he became deeply interested in her. He ordered her to marry him, but she had been just as happy as if she had gotten a more romantic proposal.

"This is Ryoo Naberrie. She is twenty-six. The blonde is her younger sister, Pooja, who is twenty-four," said Mara, giving the picture to Vader. "They aren't famous, but they have helped people, and call themselves Jedi."

Darth Vader looked at Ryoo, recognizing her now.

_"Tell me your name."_

_"Ryoo."_

And there was her last name.

_"You look like my mommy."_

_"I do?"_

Vader said nothing, though. He would find out on his own.

* * *

"Is something wrong?" Rafael asked, taking Leia's hand. They were at Imperial City's largest indoor garden, which Leia had wanted to see, but her quiet, almost uncomfortable mood had returned. 

"Wouldn't you have more fun if we went to a beach or something - alone, maybe?" she replied, despite the fact that she had cancelled their trip to Alderaan.

"You wanted to come here," Rafael said quietly. Less than fifty other visitors had been invited to the garden's opening, but he did not want to risk a disguised photographer or reporter hearing him scolding Leia. One or two gossip columnsmight be brave enough to write something about it.

"I don't feel well, that's all."

"I am sure that a vacation with me would sicken you more."

Leia looked at her fiancée. "Having an arranged marriage doesn't bother you at all? Do you ever wonder what it would be like to find someone on your own?"

"You are the one I would want to find," Rafael said. He gently squeezed her hand.

"Thank you." She smiled, more calm now.

* * *

It was after midnight when Ryoo returned to her and her sister's apartment in Cloud City. Pooja was in the kitchen, drinking hot cocoa. So far, their apartment was a secret from their masters. Obi-Wan and Hallie probably would not be happy if they saw the expensive, fancy decorating - or, more seriously, if they learned that Ryoo had a boyfriend. 

"Did you have fun?" Pooja asked as Ryoo sat across from her at the table.

"Yes," she answered, not sounding happy.

"Again..." Pooja stood up and went to make more cocoa. "...stop feeling bad. Do you think Obi-Wan or Hallie have really gone their entire lives without even one date?"

"I don't think that they're liars."

"I'm not saying that they are, but come on. We've both had boyfriends before, and neither of us have ever gotten distracted from our Jedi duties."

"Because we're two of the few Jedi left, and hardly anyone knows about us. We don't have a lot of duties," Ryoo pointed out.

Pooja shrugged. "How are we supposed to rebuild the Jedi Order if we can't get married and have families? We can't just go around the galaxy and look for Force-strong people."

"True."

"Anyway, I'm going to bed," said Pooja, giving her sister a cup of cocoa. "We're going to Naboo tomorrow."


	4. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

Pooja Naberrie met one of her cousins the next evening. She was alone, in the woods near the small town that she and Ryoo were staying in. Ryoo hadn't come with her; she had decided to stay in the hotel room. She had not wanted Pooja to go, either. Both of them sensed that someone - three someones - were here, and they were nearby.

"Don't get nervous," Pooja had replied. "Whoever it is will probably think that we don't even know that we're Force-strong. They won't pay attention to us."

Ryoo had not looked very calmed. "Fine, but don't stay out long."

Now, Pooja stopped for a moment and looked around. Ahead of her was a large clearing, and she could no longer hear any of the noises from the town. The sky would be completely dark in less than an hour.

She sighed and walked out into the clearing, which was large enough to land a small ship in. She and Ryoo would have to come out here tomorrow to practice-fight, if she wasn't tired from being out in the forest all night, trying to find her way back to the town.

"Are you lost?" a female voice asked from behind her.

"I think so," Pooja replied. "Thank you, I can't believe I let myself..."

She stopped when she saw who it was.

"Good evening," Leia said.

Pooja backed away a couple of steps. "Hello."

"Now, we both know that you aren't an innocent tourist, so let's not waste our time."

"Alright, Your Highness."

Leia removed her lightsaber from her belt and turned it on. Instead of immediately assaulting her cousin, she waited and let Pooja take out her own saber.

"You know who I am," Pooja said quietly.

Leia struck at her. She blocked it.

They fought for only a few minutes, before the princess paused and moved away. Pooja stared at her for a moment.

"Not bad," Leia commented. "I'll see you later."

"What? You're leaving?"

Leia disappeared into the trees without replying. Pooja did not follow her, and waited a little while before heading back to the town. She was alert as she walked, expecting that Leia was testing her and would show up again at any second, but she didn't.

Leia returned to where Luke and Mara were waiting. Pooja and Ryoo left Naboo less than an hour later; in case Darth Vader and Darth Amidala were planning to come here as well.

* * *

"Was she afraid of you?" Amidala asked Leia later, while they were eating.

"Not really."

Amidala nodded, glancing at Vader. He did not want to tell the twins, yet, that Pooja and Ryoo were their cousins. She agreed with him. These were some of the first Jedi that their children had dealt with, and it was best not to distract them.

"Have you and Rafael decided where you want the wedding to be?" Amidala asked.

"Not yet," Leia answered. Not wanting her parents to be annoyed with her, she added, "I think I've found the dress that I want."

* * *

She waited another two days before officially choosing a dress. She was partially hoping that her parents would change their minds and tell her that she did not have to marry Rafael. But at the same time, Rafael kept trying to impress and flatter Leia, which did not bother her. During the next week, he had breakfast or lunch with her every day. He had flowers delivered to her and Luke's private shuttle whenever he knew she was going to use it. They visited a few gardens on Alderaan and Yavin Four, but Leia did not decide which one she wanted the wedding to be at.

Pooja and Ryoo hid during the week, but Mara and Luke began to follow them.


	5. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

A week later, Ryoo Naberrie was leaving a small town on Alderaan - she had hidden her speeder bike in the woods, just outside of the hotel. Her comlink beeped. She reached for it, careful not to drop the drink she was holding.

"Pooja, I'm on my way back," she said. "The café didn't have vanilla coffee, so I got you a--"

"Try the moonglow juice shake," Mara Jade Vader said. "It's good - oh, wait you're allergic to moonglow, right?"

Ryoo turned off her comlink and looked around. She only sensed one other Force-strong being, which had to be Pooja. Mara could not be nearby. Even so, Ryoo quickly went to her speeder bike and rode back to the hotel.

* * *

"The shuttle is ready now, My Lady," one of the officers said to Leia. "We are very sorry for the wait."

"Do not let it happen again," Rafael told him.

Leia just nodded. It had only taken them five minutes to clean whatever-the-part-was-called. She was not going to become angry about it.

"Who is that?" she asked, indicating the young, brown-haired human man that was leaving the landing area with two other mechanics.

"One of the new members of the repairs and maintenence crew, ma'am," the officer answered. "Would you like to see him?"

"No," said Rafael.

The officer bowed and left them.

Rafael was briefly annoyed, wondering why his fiancée had noticed the boy, but decided not to say anything. She was probably just cautious. Since one of Palpatine and Alana's spies had hurt Mara and Luke's baby, there was more security when dealing with new personnel, even cleaners and mechanics.

"These are beautiful," Leia said when she saw the flowers that had been arranged in the room at the back of the shuttle.

Rafael kissed her cheek. "I love you."

She looked at him. "What?"

"I love you," he repeated. He lightly brushed his mouth against hers. She did not try to start a kiss.

"Rafael..."

"I know that you don't love me," he interrupted. "Not yet - but you will."

Leia looked as if she were about to cry, but not out of sweetness.

"Thank you for being patient," she said simply.

Rafael had hoped to hear something more than that, but he did not argue with her.


	6. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six**

Two days later, Leia saw the brown-haired man she had noticed. She was sitting alone inside her private chambers at the base on Imperial City. Rafael was busy, since he was the new admiral. She did not feel like following him around right now.

After their discussion the other day, he watched her more intensely and tried to have her with him almost every moment, unless she had to go somewhere else, almost the way Darth Vader wanted Amidala around him constantly. But then again, Amidala loved it, and she had actually _wanted_ to marry her husband. Leia assured herself that her situation was a little different.

She looked up as the man entered the room, followed by two Stormtroopers.

"Your Highness," he said, bowing briefly. "I'm here to fix the heating."

"Someone came and repaired it already," Leia replied, studying him for a moment. She had barely glimpsed the new worker that she had spotted the other day, but was certain that this was the same man.

"Oh. My apologies, Your Highness," he said.

"What is your name?" she asked. "You are one of the new maintenance crew members, am I correct?"

"Yes, ma'am. I am Han Solo."

"Welcome to the base, Han." Leia could tell that he was a little surprised to hear any kind of friendly, personal greeting from her.

"Thank you."

"You are welcome. Have a nice day."

"You, too, Your Highness."

* * *

"Leia," Darth Amidala said softly, entering her daughter's room, "I want to talk to you."

Leia sat down on the edge of her bed, expecting this talk to mostly be light scolding about her bad attitude toward the wedding. She supposed she deserved it - she admitted that she was not trying to become closer with Rafael.

"Your father and I had a discussion last night," Amidala began, sitting next to her, "and we have decided to give you a week."

"A week for what?"

"Another week to pick someone that you like."

"Are you toying with me?" asked Leia, not feeling much better.

Amidala kissed her forehead. "Of course not. But, the wedding will be a week from tomorrow, on Naboo. If you do not find someone before then, you have no choice."

"I understand."

Hugging her daughter, Amidala added, "I wouldn't have suggested this to your father if I did not think that Rafael is perfect for you. I don't see why we shouldn't have the wedding today, but I want to give you another chance to find someone."

"Thank you," Leia said quietly.


	7. Chapter Seven

Author's note: This story has been on hiatus for almost a month, so re-read it if you want. Sorry that the chapters have been short. 

**Chapter Seven**

Rafael Aryies was angry when Darth Vader told him about the extra week that Leia had been allowed. Rather than being angry with Vader, though, his bad mood was directed more at Leia. He knew she that she would most likely pick someone within the next day or two, just to get out of marrying him. Then again, her main problem was that she did _not_ want to be forced to marry.

Vader also told Rafael to stay away from Leia during the next week, to avoid distracting her. He agreed, feeling defeated already.

* * *

To her parents' surprise, Leia did not do anything or mention any suitors during the next five days. She spent a lot of time practicing with her parents or Mara and Luke, as if she did not really care.

Despite the fact that she now had only two days left to make a choice, Leia asked her parents if she could go with Mara and Luke. They wanted to follow Pooja and Ryoo around and keep and eye on them. Vader let Leia join them.

* * *

That was when she ran into Han Solo again. He was one of the pilots inside her, Luke, and Mara's shuttle. When Leia saw him, she stopped for a moment before going back to the passenger room.

"It is nice to see you again...Han?" she said.

"Yes, Your Highness."

She gave him a faint smile, then followed Mara and Luke.

* * *

On Dantooine, Pooja was lying in bed, in the room at the small inn where she and Ryoo were staying in, when she felt three familiar Force-strong presences. Of course, it could be anyone - probably someone who did not know anything about the Force - but the fact that three of them arrived together made Pooja more cautious. She sat up.

"Ryoo!" she said.

Ryoo sighed. "Go to sleep."

"It's probably them."

"So?" Ryoo was quiet for a second, focusing on what she had sensed. The presences were faint.

"They're not anywhere close to us," she added, "and it's night. They'll probably spend the night somewhere."

"Which is why we should go now," Pooja replied. "Or at least call Hallie or Obi-Wan."

"Don't."

"Fine, but don't blame me if anyone sneaks in here during the night."

* * *

Ryoo wished she had listened to her little sister. When she woke up the next morning and went into the next room, where the small living room and kitchen area were, Mara Jade Vader was there. She was sitting at the table, wearing black pants and a sleeveless red shirt, looking at pictures.

"Good morning," she said.

"What are you doing here?" Ryoo asked. She approached Mara, who made no move to get up, and looked over her shoulder at the pictures.

"Your apartment is lovely. Luke and I are thinking about getting a place in Cloud City," Mara commented. "I made coffee. Want some?"

"No," Ryoo snapped. "Go away. I don't think that we should battle inside a small hotel room."

Mara flipped through the pictures again, then gave them to the Jedi. Ryoo looked at them again, then noticed that a few of them showed her and a Twi'lek man - her boyfriend, Kev, walking around a park on Cloud City. She sighed.

"I am guessing that Hallie and Obi-Wan didn't know about him?" Mara asked, standing up.

"_Didn't_? Did you tell them?"

"No - and I am not going to, I promise."

"You don't expect me to believe you, do you?"

"You can let them find out on their own," Mara replied. "Meanwhile, I will enjoy being able to go anywhere I want with my husband, whenever I want, without having to hide. It's wonderful."

Ryoo smiled viciously and went over to the room's door. She opened it. "Have a nice afternoon."

"You, too," Mara replied. She left.

* * *

Inside his private quarters at his base, Rafael Aryies picked up his comlink. Darth Vader had only told him to stay away from Leia during the week - so calling her was not necessarily going near her. But bending orders given to him by Vader was not a good idea. He sighed and threw the comlink onto the couch.

Leia only had another day or two to make a decision. Rafael knew that she was following those two Jedi with Luke and Mara. Vader had at least told him that. She could not be too focused on looking for someone.

* * *

Leia had stayed behind in the passenger room in the shuttle. She had wanted to go with her brother and Mara, but wasn't feeling well. They would probably be back soon, since Luke was always hesitant about leaving his sister alone.

A buzz came from the door. Leia pressed a button near the chair she was sitting in and let the person in. It was Han, carrying a tray that held a glass of icewater and a small plate of expensive sweets. He set it on the table in front of her.

"If you need anything, My Lady..." he began in an obviously faked polite tone.

"You don't like this job very much, do you?" Leia asked, smiling.

"No - I mean, yes, ma'am...I just, uh..."

"Tell me - and sit down, if you wish. I am bored."

Han hesitated, then carefully sat on the red couch across from her. She was wearing light blue pants and a matching long-sleeved shirt.

"Answer me," she said, sounding more playful now.

"I just, uh, I would rather...well, I like piloting and working on the ships and stuff..."

Leia nodded. "I understand. I will make sure that you are only assigned there."

"But of course, I am happy to serve you, Your Highness," Han added quickly.

She was about to reply, but they heard the shuttle's entrance opening. Han stood up. He bowed to Mara and Luke when they entered the room, and returned to the pilot area.


	8. Chapter Eight

This chapter is short, just because I haven't updated in a week, so I wanted to update with something. Next one will be longer. 

**Chapter Eight**

Rafael gestured toward the door of his bedroom and mentally pushed the button to open it. Kyleeza came in.

"Darth Amidala just contacted me," she said. "The wedding is cancelled."

She sensed her son's anger, but it was not as strong as she had expected. It was more disappointment.

"I am not surprised," he said, glancing at the holograph of Leia that was on the wall, near the door.

It showed her and him sitting by the edge of a small pond on Alderaan, on Leia's sixteenth birthday. Neither of them were smiling, but Rafael remembered how excited he had been to have a chance to sit right next to her. She even rested her head against his shoulder, just for a moment, for the picture. He had tried to control his excitement and was barely able to keep his skin from noticeably changing shades.

Kyleeza kissed his cheek, interrupting his thoughts.

"It is not because of you," she said, touching his shoulder. "Leia has been eager to progress in her training more - even before your engagement - and Lord Vader thinks that it would be best for her to focus. You understand, don't you?"

"Yes," Rafael admitted.

Kyleeza hugged him, sensing that he wanted to be alone, and turned and left the room.

* * *

Pooja and Ryoo Naberrie hid well for the next week - either that, or Mara and Luke were taking a break from looking for them. When they went back to their apartment, everything was fine. Mara, or the spy or agent that had been there, had not taken or damaged anything.

When the two of them visited Hallie and Obi-Wan on Cloud City - a few miles from their apartment, so that their teachers would not know exactly where it was - neither of the Jedi Masters seemed to suspect anything. Mara still had not told them about Kev and Ryoo - yet. Ryoo was not going to rely on the Sith Lady's promise.

Rafael barely saw Leia during the week, and whenever she did come to his base, she stayed beside her father. But she seemed to know that her ex-fiancée was not thinking of hurting her, which was good. He would try to win her over later, when he had the chance.

Han did not see Leia much, either, but she had kept her word about making sure that he was only assigned in maintenance and flying some of the shuttles. He wanted to thank her, so that she wouldn't think that he was being rude. He noticed her a couple of times when she was on the _Executor_ one afternoon, but she was talking with Vader about something, so he did not try to approach her.


	9. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Nine**

Mara was lost in the same forest on Naboo where Leia first attacked Pooja - only she was far from the town, and she knew that she had only made it worse by wandering around. She could feel Luke's faint presence and knew he was at least twenty miles away, but she could not sense exactly where he was. He was probably looking for her by now, so she decided to find a place to make a fire and stay there.

Someone nearby had already made a fire, though. Mara thought she smelt smoke, and as she kept walking, she finally spotted an orange-yellow glow through the trees. It could be Ryoo and Pooja, who were not far away, or maybe campers. She had her lightsaber, so she decided to go and see.

_Great_, she thought when she was closer, seeing that it was Ryoo and Pooja. By now, they had already heard her approaching, so she did not turn around.

"Hello," Ryoo greeted her, sounding as if she was not bothered by her last meeting with Mara. Perhaps she had found out that Mara had really not mentioned Kev to the girls' masters.

"You must be lost," Mara said.

"And you felt like walking around the woods at night - with Luke nowhere near you?" Pooja asked. She and her sister were both sitting on a blanket, roasting fish that they had caught.

"And you just feel like sitting there? I might have my lightsaber out in a second."

"We aren't going to fight you," Ryoo said. "There are two of us. That isn't fair."

"You can help us with this fish, if you want," Pooja offered. "I don't think that your husband is going to find you within the next hour."

Mara sighed. Luke's presence was slightly closer, less than half of a mile. She was not sure if he was going to be angry with her or not, but she was not very nervous right now. She just wanted him to find her.

Ryoo sensed how upset she was. "I feel that way whenever Kev and I are apart."

Mara started to say that she and Luke were never apart - she always felt like he had an invisible leash on her, since the day she began working for him. But she did not want to discuss her feelings with the two Jedi. She sat down a few feet away from them, but remained quiet. She was hungry, but did not want to accept any food from them.

"How did you get lost?" asked Pooja.

"Why do you care?" the Sith Lady snapped, although she had just sensed something interesting - Pooja was jealous. She was trying to turn the subject away from Ryoo and Kev. Mara decided to bother her a little more.

In a nicer tone, she added, "How did you and Kev meet each other, Ryoo?"

"I met him on Cloud City, just before Pooja and I moved there," she said, without giving too much information to the Sith.

"Which is why Rooja wanted to move there," Pooja added, picking at one of the fish she had roasted before Mara appeared. It was starting to cool.

Her sister almost said something, but changed her mind.

Mara smiled and stood up. "Well, I should go."

"I thought you were lost..." Ryoo started.

"Keep walking that way," Pooja interrupted, pointing, "and you'll find the path that goes to the town. Stay on it, and you'll be there in about two hours."

"Thank you." Mara sensed her bad mood. She smiled. "Good night."

She left without either of the girls following her.

* * *

She used her comlink - she had just now remembered that she had it with her - and called her husband. He told her to meet him near the end of the path, just outside the town. She arrived first, so she hid her presence whenever someone approached.

As soon as Luke was in sight, she hid herself again and went to him. She would have ran to him if it weren't dark; she did not want to trip over any rocks or tree roots. He held her tightly. She thought of the day when she gave him her report about a bounty hunter that she had been tracking. He told her that she did well and kissed her cheek. She had not known what to say, so she continued telling him about the bounty hunter.

Luke did not seem annoyed with her for getting lost, so as they walked back to their speeder, she told him about meeting Ryoo and Pooja. Both of them sensed that the two Jedi were still miles away, so Luke did not want to attack them. Mara was tired.

Their house and Vader's were on the other side of Naboo. It would probably be morning by the time they returned, so Luke had gotten one of their agents to reserve a whole hotel floor for them in the town. He knew that having the whole floor reserved was not necessary, but Mara felt uncomfortable having several other guests around. Getting to the hotels was easy, since the staff was always ordered not to tell anybody that the prince and princess were staying there.

Mara would have preferred to camp somewhere, so she and Luke could be alone, but she knew it was not good to be asleep in the forest while Ryoo and Pooja could try to move closer.

The hotel staff had hurried to get flowers to the largest suite on the floor, bring candies and other refreshments, and find a few different robes - they probably were not exactly sure of Mara and Luke's sizes - but Mara barely noticed. She just kicked off her boots and lay down, not bothering to get under the bed's covers. Luke wanted to stay awake for another hour or so, just to keep an eye on everything.

They left early the next morning, without anyone knowing.

They no longer felt Pooja and Ryoo's presences, meaning the two Jedi had probably left Naboo during the night. Luke was not angry about letting them escape. He was glad that they had been too foolish to attack Mara when they had a good opportunity. He had been training her well, but she was not at the point where she could easily defend herself against two opponents.

"I am pleased with you," he told his wife as he started the speeder.

"I didn't do anything," she replied. "I should have fought them. They were probably expecting me to be confused and worried about being lost."

"You cannot try fighting two opponents - which you have not practiced at all - especially at night, in the woods," her husband said.

She just nodded, without trying to argue.

"You found a weakness in Pooja, which is useful," Luke added. "Good work."


	10. Chapter Ten

Author's note (please read): If my updates are a little slow, it's because I'm editing the Moonlight series. I'm just fixing grammar, spelling, etc., and maybe adding a few scenes. I'll make a note when I'm done, but you won't really have to read them again unless you want to. 

**Chapter Ten**

Other than being worried and starving, Mara was fine after her night in the forest, but Luke still wanted her to rest when they went to his parents' house. He wanted her to tell them and Leia about what she had learned about Pooja, anyway.

Leia heard her mother letting them inside, and was about to leave her bedroom when her comlink beeped. She had a strong guess that it was Rafael, and she did not feel like talking with him right now, so she ignored it.

"Hello," she said when she entered the living room. "Are you alright, Mara?"

"Yes," she answered. She told everyone about running into Pooja and Ryoo.

Darth Vader thought for a moment, then said, "Leia will deal with Pooja."

"Me? Why?" Leia asked, sitting next to Luke.

"She may trust you more easily. You will be able to draw her away from Ryoo."

"Especially since we just cancelled your wedding," Darth Amidala added.

"I'm not upset about it being cancelled," her daughter said. "But I suppose Ryoo and Pooja don't know that."

"Exactly."

Mara, curled up on the other side of Luke, rested her head on his chest. "What about Ryoo?"

"You and Luke can deal with her," Amidala replied. "You're married, and she has a boyfriend."

She still thought it was good to not tell the twins that Pooja and Ryoo were their cousins, though she and Vader had not discussed whether they wanted to kill the two Jedi or turn them. She was not attached to them, but wanted to at least try turning them, since they were her nieces.

Leia was glad that her parents had given her an assignment - one that she would mostly do on her own.

* * *

When she went to the _Executor_ the next afternoon, with Mara and Luke, she wondered if Han was here. She had wanted to find out if he had been reassigned, as she had ordered. On her way to the private chambers, she stopped an officer.

"Will you go and see if a Han Solo is here?" she asked. "He might be in repairs and maintenence. Send him to see me."

"Yes, My Lady," the officer said. He made a small bow and left.

* * *

Han came a few minutes later. Leia sensed that he was a little nervous, but she understood. She smiled at him, and he relaxed.

"Were you transferred, as I ordered?" she asked, standing up.

She was wearing pants again, like the last time she had talked to him - black ones, with a long-sleeved black shirt. He did not stare at her for too long, not wanting her to notice.

"Yes, Your Highness," he said.

"Good, but I have another idea for you. You will be my assistant."

"Yes, ma'am."

"My father recommends that I have one or two personal agents," Leia added, "and I have chosen you."

"I am honored, My Lady," Han replied. He paused. "This is none of my business, of course, but, uh...may I ask if you've chosen anyone else, too?"

She smiled again. "Maybe. You may go now."

Han bowed. "Thank you, My Lady."


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Chapter Eleven**

Han Solo was not very thrilled about being the princess's personal agent. He was actually annoyed. She had let him transfer to maintanence and piloting for less than two weeks, and now he had to be her assistant. He could guess what kind of things he would be doing - picking up clothes for her, making sure every hotel room she stayed in had everything she wanted, running her errands.

He was not going to argue with her, of course. At least he seemed to be on her good side.

* * *

"Please tell me," Leia Vader almost whined, sitting down on her bed, beside her mother. 

"You already know how we met each other," Darth Amidala replied.

_"I would like to practice with you. Perhaps it will make you feel better."_

_"It might."_

_"Would you like to meet later?"_

"I know that you met when you were still Jedi. You haven't actually told me or Luke anything more..."

"That was in my old life. It does not matter," Amidala interrupted.

"The story of how you met each other doesn't matter?" Leia asked.

"No!" her mother snapped. In a softer tone, she added, "What I mean is that your father and I do not care or think about our old lives. What is important is that we are together. Hearing about how we met is not your concern."

Leia nodded.

"I'm sorry," Amidala said, hugging her. "I love you and Luke. You know that the Jedi stole me from my parents when I was six. I don't even remember them."

Leia nodded again. She and her brother did not know that it was Kyleeza - supposedly - who had taken Padmé. Amidala did not want the twins to ask why she would not just talk to Kyleeza and find out where her parents were. Sometimes she herself wondered why she wouldn't do that...

"I didn't mean to annoy you," Leia said. "I was just thinking that I should know how you and Dad met. It might be useful when I try to convince Pooja that I'm depressed about you cancelling my wedding."

"Alright," Amidala replied. "I will tell you."

* * *

Mara Jade Vader did not seem to be in a good mood. She had not tried the bantha steak she had made, which was as excellent as everything else she cooked. For a moment, she thought of her talk with Ryoo and Pooja Naberrie the other night. She was starting to dislike them a lot. 

She already knew what Ryoo was thinking, or at least had a guess. The Jedi thought that poor Mara had some goodness left inside her, and wanted to try to turn her.

"What is it?" Luke asked.

Mara was quiet at first, then said, "Were you mad at me for allowing the baby to be hurt?"

"You had just woken from the surgery, and were unable to do anything. Do not start this again."

"Sorry," Mara murmured. She changed the subject. "I found out that Pooja and Ryoo are moving - probably because we found their place on Bespin City. The spy heard them talking about it."

That spy was a Zabrak man who had rented an apartment next door to the Jedis'. So far, they seemed to be unaware of him, unless he was another reason why they were moving.

"We will go there tomorrow and see if they are there," Luke said.

"Alright."

----------

Author's note: Sorry for the short chapter, I just wanted to update. I'll have three or four chapters on the next update. Stuff that's coming: Amidala is curious about finding her parents, Leia and Han, and how Luke and Mara got together.


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Chapter Twelve**

When Darth Amidala and Darth Vader came home the next night, Leia was gone. She was not anywhere outside. Her parents had been on Naboo for an hour now, so Vader should have sensed if she was in danger, but he had not, and Amidala had not said anything.

"She's staying with Luke and Mara," Amidala said, hugging her husband. "She called me earlier. They went to Cloud City to see if Ryoo and Pooja have moved yet."

Leia had called Amidala earlier, but her mother had actually suggested that she go with Luke and Mara. She wanted to have a night alone with Vader, since he would probably have to be in a good mood when she told him that she wanted to look for the Naberries.

She doubted that he would like that, but once she convinced him to let her, she was sure that it would be easy to find her parents. She guessed that Kyleeza herself had taken six-year-old Padmé from them. Unless they had moved, Amidala thought that she could easily track them, since she already had information on her older sister and Ryoo and Pooja.

She was curious about Sola, too, but she was only going to mention her parents. Vader would probably not want her to go around looking for several members of her family.

He looked at her for a second. He did not seem to suspect that she was planning something, but she was not sure.

* * *

Amidala did say anything about her parents while they were eating. They discussed Leia, mostly. At first, Amidala had not liked playing with their daughter - telling her to marry Rafael, then giving her another week to choose someone else, then cancelling the wedding. But Vader had not done that intentionally, and Amidala agreed that Leia should focus on her training.

"I do not consider her slow," Vader said. "She is patient."

Amidala made a small nod at first, then realized that she probably looked as if she were not paying attention.

"I agree," she added.

She was deep in thought about Anakin, actually, mostly because she was going to bring up the topic of finding her parents. She did not think about him, the Jedi, often. Vader was the one that she had been married to for over twenty years. She had really gotten to know him. Perhaps he did not think about Padmé much.

Glancing at him, she saw that he was looking at her, almost suspiciously.

"I think I'm going to take a bath later," she said, smiling. "Will you join me?"

"Yes," Vader replied, but he still stared at her for a second.

"Do you want anymore taun-taun steak?"

"No."

* * *

Amidala felt better when they took a bath. She mentioned another idea she'd had, about Rafael. One or two of their agents should be assigned to pilot his personal shuttle for a week or two, just to watch him. Vader agreed with her.

She moved closer to him and kissed his shoulder.

"I love you," she said quietly, letting her voice sound glum. She wondered if this would be a bad idea. She shivered, despite the warm bathwater they were sitting in.

Vader sensed her worry, of course. "What is it?"

She leaned against him, wishing she had not brought it up yet.

"Tell me."

Amidala hesitated, then told him. She did not mention that Leia had been asking, yesterday, about how Anakin and Padmé met, which had sparked Amidala's sudden interest in looking for Ruwee and Jobal.

At first, Vader was angry, and he guessed that she had asked Mara and Luke to take Leia with them, so that she could try to get him into a very good mood. It had actually worked until now.

He waited a moment before saying anything. Amidala slid away, just an inch or two.

Underneath the water, he slid his arm around her and pulled her close again.

"No," he said calmly.

"I know what you are thinking," she said, "but this has nothing to do with the Jedi. I just want to see my parents."

"If you can find them, Amidala. Kyleeza may not have been the one that took you. Perhaps no one told her where you were found."

Amidala had not considered that. She sighed. "You won't even let me try?"

Vader stroked her cheek. "I do not want to see you disappointed."

"I think that one of our agents can find them," she said. "Mara found enough information on Pooja and Ryoo. She can find out about their mother - my sister, I mean - which will lead her to my parents."

"When you meet them, do you think they will believe anything you say?"

"I am the Empress. They won't think that I go around doing this for fun, especially if they haven't done anything that would make me notice them."

"That is true," Vader replied, "but how do you know that they will even want to speak with you? They will think of you as evil, as everyone else does."

Amidala had not thought about that, either. Her husband was probably right. Once once she convinced Ruwee and Jobal that she was their daughter, they might not want anything to do with her, even if she had been stolen from them.

She reached for the bath's plug and pulled it. She was quiet as the water began draining.

"You are not certain that the Jedi stole you," Vader added, touching her shoulder. "Perhaps your parents let them take you."

"I want to try," she said softly. "Please?"

"I will have one of our agents find them."

"Thank you."

-----------------

Author's note: Next chapter will mostly be about how Mara and Luke got together. I wanted to go ahead and upload this one.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Chou hime: Thanks for your review. I mostly pay attention to good ones, because people who write good ones have usually read the story instead of skimming through it. 

**Chapter Thirteen**

The twins and Mara Jade went to Kashyyk instead of Cloud City. The spy who lived in the apartment next to Ryoo and Pooja's had contacted Mara, and let her know that they were no longer there. He had overheard the building's owner talking to one of her friends and complaining about them leaving so soon, without giving her any notice.

The sun was starting to set when they landed on Kashyyk, in a large clearing on the edge of a forest. Leia usually liked camping, but tonight, she quickly had that lonely, awkward feeling that you got whenever you were out with a couple, and did not have anyone of your own to be with.

She thought of Rafael, but not with any sadness or longing. They had not talked to each other at all since the wedding was cancelled.

_"I know that you don't love me. Not yet - but you will."_

Leia had believed Rafael when he said that, but she did not feel bad. Besides, he had probably said that without sorting out his feelings first. She sensed his emotions, of course, but he could be confused. Their parents had put them together. Perhaps he thought that he loved her, without really thinking about it.

He had not sent her flowers, or told anyone to give her a message. He might have found somebody else by now.

That thought did not make her jealous at all, but she was lonely.

"Leia?" Mara asked. "Come on. We're going to make a campfire."

Leia nodded quietly and followed her to the ship's small side door.

* * *

When Leia and Mara came outside, Luke did not ask his twin what was bothering her. He and Mara both seemed to know that she did not feel like talking about it.

For a moment, Luke did not seem to notice that Leia was even there. He briefly stared at his wife, still a little annoyed that he had let her go off on her own and get lost in the woods, on Naboo, the other night. He was very protective of her, especially since they had lost the baby. Even a while ago, when he first became interested in her, he had hesitated to give her any difficult assignments that would take her a long time. He started telling her to meet him in person to give her reports, instead of contacting him by holograph. In addition to that, he started giving her more assignments and little tests, so that she had to meet with him a few times a week.

She must have thought that was odd, but within a month, she became more awkward around Luke. He began to sense her feelings - back then, Mara had not known that she was Force-strong, and had no idea that her master was feeling her emotions.

"Maybe. I don't know," Leia was saying, interrupting Luke's thoughts.

Mara picked up a small twig and tossed it into the fire. "Your parents have one or two spies watching him, don't they?"

"Yes, and he has probably guessed that they would do that."

"He - and Zaron and Kyleeza - probably know that we have someone watching them sometimes," Mara replied.

"They do not seem bothered by it," Luke said. "We do not want to start plotting against each other."

Leia nodded. "That's how the original group of Sith was destroyed. They fought with each other."

"Yes."

"Do you think that Lord Vader wants to turn Ryoo and Pooja?" Mara asked.

Leia shrugged, although she already had some ideas for Pooja. There was that insecurity in the Jedi, that Mara had found - Pooja's jealousy of her sister.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Author's note (read please)**: Please leave me a review and let me know if any of you go to my profile (/dravenstar) instead of just to the story itself. I want to know because then I could put some of my notes on the profile instead of having to copy and paste them into each of my updates. 

Also, my site (the homepage link in my profile) is closed now, because I was mainly updating just to link my fanfiction, and you can just go to my profile for that.

**Chapter Fourteen**

"I took you," Kyleeza Aryies said. She and Darth Amidala were sitting in the small lounge in the private quarters on the _Executor_.

Of course, she would usually not be referring to Amidala as "you" when she was actually talking about Padmé, the Jedi, but the Sith Order's rules said that it was allowed when trying to explain something more easily.

"And the Council decided that you should train me?" Amidala asked.

Kyleeza was surprised that her friend had not asked whether the Naberries _let_ her take Padmé. Perhaps Amidala did not really care.

"Yes. Since you were a little too old, they thought you would be more comfortable staying with me."

Amidala nodded. "Do you remember when the Naberries lived?"

"No, not really. I am sorry," Kyleeza answered. "And, they may have moved."

"I have thought of that, but I am sure that one of our agents can find them. I doubt that missing their child would be enough for them to make fake identities." Amidala was quiet for a moment, then changed the subject. "How is Rafael?"

She was really asking "Is Rafael thinking of bothering my daughter?" and Kyleeza knew it, but she understood.

"He has a date tonight."

"That's good."

* * *

Darth Vader had not been very supportive of Amidala so far. He had even told her that he thought her idea was stupid. She understood why he was being mean to her - he did not want to see her disappointed. 

One of their agents had found the Naberries quickly. They were still living in the same house on Naboo. Ruwee was now sixty-seven, Jobal was sixty-six. Neither of them had gotten into any trouble with the Empire that would have made them noticed before. Amidala knew that Jobal had not been close with either Palpatine or Alana. Maybe that was part of the reason why Amidala's grandmother had become less friendly with her after a few years.

The spy also learned that Jobal and Ruwee would not be home for another week. They were visiting Imperial City.

Vader suggested that Amidala wait until they returned home. He probably knew that part of her wanted to see her old house.

"Are you angry with me?" she asked him later that evening, while they were on the back porch.

"No," he said, resting his hand on her shoulder. "Although I still believe this is useless."

She looked hurt. "Useless?"

"Do you think they will want anything to do with you?"

"They probably want to know who their daughter is. How do you think your mother felt..." Amidala stopped quickly.

Surprisingly, Vader ignored that. "You are not the girl that they lost."

"I know." His wife hugged him. "I shouldn't have said that. I am sorry."

He did not respond to the apology, but she knew that he was not annoyed.

"Come," he said. They went back inside.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Chapter Fifteen**

Luke, Mara, and Leia came home for a few days, then left again to follow Pooja and Ryoo, who were going to Yavin Five. Leia half-expected the girls to go see Obi-Wan and Hallie, but they had not yet, perhaps because they guessed that someone might be following them.

Darth Amidala had mostly decided what to do. She thought of going to her parents' house the day before they returned from their trip, so that she could wait for them. She had asked Darth Vader to keep his presence hidden at first, since her parents might be less afraid if they only saw her at first.

Part of her wondered if they had already recognized her as their daughter, but that did not seem likely, since she was six years old when she was taken from them. Empress Alana had obviously not told Jobal Naberrie anything, or she probably would have taken Padmé to see her, back when she and Palpatine were more friendly to Vader and Amidala.

Vader and Amidala left early in the morning. Amidala was wearing black pants and a long-sleeved white shirt, and had a pair of expensive, dark sunglasses. If her parents were home early and she had to buzz their door, at first she might look like a snobby, rich tourist who needed directions.

She and Vader were both quiet as he started the speeder. She did not sense that he was very annoyed, but she still felt uncomfortable.

"Thank you," she told him. "I probably could not do this if you were not going with me."

"Then I should have stayed home," he replied.

Amidala reached over and rested her hand on his knee. "If you really think that me seeing them is a bad idea, we should just go back home."

"No."

"Why not?"

"You will still be curious about them," said Vader.

"Let's talk about something else," Amidala said softly. She started to mention Ryoo and Pooja, but did not want to have a discussion about them, either. She was still not sure how she felt about her nieces.

"I love you," she added, taking her hand away from her husband's knee. She touched his shoulder, suddenly feeling very hurt and nervous.

He sensed her sadness and glanced at her for a second. "And I love you. I do not want to see them hurt you."

"Do you really think they won't want to talk to me?"

"If my mother was alive, perhaps she would not want anything to do with me," Vader said.

Amidala was suprised to hear him say something like that. She just shrugged.

"But understand that I have no interest in my past," she told him. She patted his shoulder. "I just want my parents to know who I am. If they do not want to associate with me, I suppose it will be their own choice."

----------------

Sorry for another short chapter, the next one is going to be long, so I wanted to go ahead and post this part.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Chapter Sixteen**

No one was at Jobal and Ruwee's house. Darth Amidala was relieved. She had been worried that they might have come home early.

The front door was most likely locked. Vader did not attempt to open it, since Amidala probably did not want to break into the door like thieves. After she looked around the porch for a minute, they walked around to the back of the house.

The whole back yard was surrounded by a tall fence. The gate was in the back. Amidala cut through it with her lightsaber, since her parents would probably go inside the house first - and run into her and Vader - before going outside and noticing the damaged gate. She decided to buy a new one later.

Vader watched her as she looked around the backyard. He remembered Padmé sharing her faint memories of it, the first time she and Anakin went to his apartment. The well-kept grass and different flower gardens were probably familiar.

She looked ahead at the back porch of the house, then returned to Vader's side and held onto his arm. He almost scolded her, lightly, for being so afraid, but changed his mind. They walked to the porch.

* * *

Pooja and Ryoo Naberrie were staying at a very nice hotel on Yavin Five. Of course, they could not afford it, so they'd had to use a mind trick to make the clerk give them the keys to their room. They knew that was wrong, but Obi-Wan had suggested it. The Sith would not expect them to be in an expensive hotel, and since they had not really paid for their room, it might be harder to find them.

"We shouldn't use room service, I guess," Pooja said, sitting down on the bed. "Someone will probably notice that we haven't paid for our room."

Ryoo nodded quietly. They could probably just use a mind trick on any security officer, too, but she did not want to order free massages and food when they had not even paid for their room.

"You miss Kev," Pooja guessed, lying down.

"No."

"What? Why not?"

"I do, but..." Ryoo paused. "Please don't hate me, Pooja."

"What is it?"

"Kev and I have been married for six years."

"You..." Pooja sat up. She looked as if she were going to say something that was probably angry, but stopped. "Wait. You told Mara Jade that you met Kev on Bespin, just before we moved there, and I didn't sense that you were lying - but we lived on Bespin for only two years."

Ryoo nodded. "What I meant was that I met up with him there, so that I could show him our new apartment. I didn't meet him for the first time."

Pooja was quiet for a moment. Her sister felt her anger.

"Pooja, I...you said yourself that we can't really rebuild the Jedi Order if we're not allowed to marry and have families, right?"

"That isn't the point!" her sister snapped, standing up. "You could have told me."

"Kev is here. I called him and told him where we were staying, and since our six-year anniversary is tomorrow, we decided that we should tell you."

"You could have told me!" Pooja repeated. "Do Hallie and Obi-Wan know?"

"Of course not," answered Ryoo.

"They might know soon, then."

Ryoo sighed, as if she did not really expect her sister to tell their Masters anything. "Pooja, please don't..."

Pooja ignored her and went over to the door, and left.

Ryoo started to go after her, but stopped. Pooja would probably come back soon, after she had calmed down. She had to understand why Kev and Ryoo had not said anything to her. Even if she did not, it was unlikely that she would tell Hallie and Obi-Wan.

_Hopefully_, Ryoo thought.

Her comlink began beeping. She quickly unclipped it from her belt and turned it on.

"Pooja, I'm so sorry," she said, without giving the caller a chance to say anything. "Come back so that you, Kev, and I can go out to celebrate."

"Celebrate what?" Leia asked.

Ryoo turned her comlink off. It would be best not to answer it; she would just have to wait for Pooja to come back to the hotel.

She went over to the table next to the bed, which had a box of the hotel's stationary on it, and wrote a quick note: "Pooja, I went to Kev's room. If you get back before us, stay here. I love you."

She set the note on the bed, then left.

* * *

None of the bedrooms in Ruwee and Jobal's house looked as if they had been designed for a little girl. They must have decided not to keep Padme's room the way it was. One of the rooms, which had a nice view of the backyard, felt strangely familiar to Amidala. She guessed that it could have been her bedroom.

She went over to the window and looked out at the yard for a moment. Vader touched her shoulder and started to slide his arms around her waist, but stopped when they heard the front door opening downstairs.

He did not hide his presence, even though he had told Amidala that he would. She started to say something, probably reminding him about it, but then Jobal shouted.

"Ruwee!" she called, not sounding very elderly.

"What?"

"Look at the backyard gate! Somebody's broken into it!"

Vader and Amidala did not hear anything else for a few minutes, then Ruwee and Jobal slowly started coming up the stairs. Perhaps they suspected that whoever had broken in was hiding somewhere.

Ruwee stared at Vader and Amidala. He looked healthy, in great shape. His hair was dark brown. Amidala suspected that he dyed it. Beside him, Jobal gasped. Her hair was grey, but thick and long, tied back in a single braid.

"Y-Your Highnesses," she said quietly.

Ruwee made a small bow of his head.

"Hello," Amidala said, touching her husband's arm. "We apologize for coming by like this."

"A-Are you lost, My Lady? C-Can w-we help you?" Jobal offered, trying her best to get on their good side. "If you need anything to eat or drink or..."

"We want to see the two of you," Amidala interrupted, glancing at Vader. "Calm down. You have not done anything. But, since you mention it, I wouldn't mind a drink."

Jobal nodded nervously. "Of course...t-tea, water, coffee, w-wine..."

"Tea would be nice. Could we go downstairs and talk?"

"Sure, My Lady," Ruwee answered, stepping aside to let Vader pass him.

He noticed the way Amidala followed Vader and quickly took his hand again, even though they were just going downstairs. They really had a relationship - they had not just gotten married for publicity, or for Vader to have an heir or heiress to the Empire. Ruwee was touched.

He patted Jobal's shoulder, and they followed the Sith downstairs. Jobal hurried into the kitchen to make the tea.

Vader and Amidala sat down on the couch in the living room. Ruwee gave them a fake smile and sat in one of the armchairs.

"Have you gotten any snow here yet?" Amidala asked as Vader rested his hand on her leg.

Ruwee was surprised that she was bothering with conversation. "No, My Lady, but we probably will in the next week or two."

Amidala nodded as Jobal came into the room, carrying a tray with four glasses of tea.

"I can make hot tea, if you wish..." she started nervously.

"This is fine, thank you," Amidala said. "Sit down."

Jobal sat down on the other couch. "I am not trying to be rude, but I can't think of anything that Ruwee and I have done that would bother you."

"You have not done anything," Amidala told her again. "We want to ask you about..."

"...your daughters," Vader finished. "One of them."

For a second, Ruwee almost liked him - he wanted to get right to the point, too, instead of playing around with the nervous, fake politeness.

"Which one?" Ruwee asked.

Amidala hesitated. "I want to tell you that I had something to do with Padme disappearing. Did Alana or Palpatine ever tell you anything about that?"

"What? I m-mean, no, Your Highness," Jobal said. "You know that they a-are my parents."

Amidala nodded.

Ruwee had not fallen for it. "My Lady, if I may say so...if Padmé were alive, she would be around your age, meaning you would have also been a young child when she disappeared..."

"Yes," Vader said. Ruwee had just figured it out.

"Were y-you a friend of hers, M-My Lady?" Jobal asked.

"Jobal," Ruwee said, looking at her.

"What?"

Ruwee glanced at Amidala, then back at Jobal. "You look like Sola and Padmé, My Lady."

Jobal stared at her. "You...are you...?"

"Yes," Amidala answered. Her eyes were wet. She wiped them quickly. "Or, I was, I should say. This is what I am now. I just thought you should know that I am alright."

Ruwee looked as if he were trying not to cry. He glanced at Vader, which helped. He did not want to start crying in front of his son-in-law.

Vader was proud of the way Amidala had spoken just now. He squeezed her hand slightly for a second, then let go.

"But..." Jobal was not sure what to say. She wanted to hug her daughter, but was not sure if the Sith Lady would even let her. She suddenly thought of the prince and princess.

"...our grandchildren," she added, also thinking of Mara Jade Skywalker's pregnancy - she had read a couple of brief articles that said there had been complications, without much detail.

"You may see them, and us, whenever you wish," Amidala said, "if you are going to cooperate. I believe you will, since you did not brag about Palpatine and Alana being your parents."

Jobal nodded.

Amidala smiled, but still did not look very friendly. "Good. We want to have dinner with you later this week. I will call you."

"Yes, My Lady," Ruwee said, guessing that she and Vader already knew his comlink's number.

* * *

Pooja had not brought anything with her when she left the hotel room. She would have to steal, as much as she hated to. She went into a clothing store, but saw that one of the clerks was a Toydarian - mind tricks did not work on them. She went into another store, which only had two Twi'lek girls working, and picked out a few clothes.

Next, she went to a transport station. One ship was about to leave for Dantooine. She hid her presence and followed the other passengers.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

Sorry this chapter is short. I've started a new story, which I'll upload in a few days. 

**Chapter Seventeen**

Ruwee and Jobal did not hear from Darth Amidala and Darth Vader the next day, but when they came home after going out for lunch, there were two shiny new speeders - a light purple one and a red one - in front of their house.

After waiting for two days, Ryoo and Kev realized that Pooja was not coming back to the hotel. Ryoo was worried. Her sister should have calmed down by now. Ryoo no longer sensed her familiar presence, meaning that she was not anywhere nearby.

"What if she's with Hallie or Obi-Wan?" Ryoo asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed in her and her husband's room.

"Do you think she would tell them?" Kev asked. "She can't be that mad. Maybe something happened to her."

"If...anybody - you know who - was here, I would have sensed them," Ryoo pointed out. She felt a few Force-strong presences, but none had the cold, uncomfortable feeling that any of the Sith would give her.

"They could be too far away from you to sense. Maybe Pooja ran into them."

"Maybe."

Kev sat on the bed, next to Ryoo, and started to take off his boots. "What if she did tell Hallie or Obi-Wan? Will they kick you out of the Jedi Order?"

"Maybe not," Ryoo answered, feeling a little hopeful. "There's only four of us. They can't afford to banish me."

"True." Kev paused and put his arm around his wife's shoulders. "Let's just stay here for now. If we go around looking for Pooja, the Sith might find us."

"Okay."


	18. Chapter Eighteen

Master Solo: I know it's kind of annoying that I only accept signed reviews, but I don't like anonymous ones, because someone can just put something for their name and quickly leave you stupid comments. 

**Chapter Eighteen**

Once she arrived on Dantooine, Pooja Naberrie quickly found a hotel, an expensive-looking one, and used a mind trick to get a room for free. She felt bad for doing that again, but guessed that she might have to get used to it.

She went to her room - a two-room suite - and lay down on the couch for a second, thinking. At first, she wondered if Kev and Ryoo had any children, but that was impossible. Pooja had never been apart from her sister for more than two weeks. There was no way that Ryoo could have hidden a pregnancy - unless she was possibly pregnant now. That would explain her finally telling Pooja that she and Kev were married.

Pooja was tempted to call Hallie or Obi-Wan and tell them, but she did not think she had the strength to, despite how mad she was. Like her sister, she guessed that they would probably not throw Ryoo out of the small group of Jedi. They could not afford to lose her.

She sat up and looked inside her small leather purse. She had twenty credits, which she would have to save for now. If she went out to get something to eat later, she would have to use more mind tricks to get food or clothes for free.

Her comlink started beeping. She had a feeling that it was one of the Sith, but answered it anyway.

"What are you doing?" Leia asked in a friendly tone.

"Leave me alone," Pooja said, not sounding as mean as she had meant to.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" Pooja snapped, more angrily this time. "Leave me alone. Good night."

Leia started to reply, then just turned her comlink off. She could not sense lies through a comlink conversation, of course, but she somehow got the feeling that Pooja was upset about something.

* * *

The next afternoon, Leia tried calling Pooja again, while she was sitting in the private chambers in the _Executor_. 

Han Solo was here, he had come in to look at the heating unit. He was surprised that the princess did not mind calling someone while he was in here, but perhaps she did that in front of any other worker without caring.

After she tried making two calls - not get an answer from anyone - she sighed. Han took a step closer.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness," he said, "but I forgot to mention that Lord Vader's shuttle is having one or two problems. He probably won't be here until later this evening."

He expected her to punish him for not telling her sooner, but she did not look annoyed.

"Very well," she said. Her parents were supposed to be meeting her and Luke here - Mara was at home. She did not feel well. Leia guessed that she might be pregnant again. At the moment, Luke was watching the officers in the main command area. Leia briefly considered joining him, but changed her mind.

"Where are you from?" she asked Han. She knew he was not thrilled with being her personal assistant - he was much happier in maintenance and repairs.

"Corellia, Your Highness," he said.

She nodded. "Do you have a ship?"

"Yes, ma'am, the Millenium Falcon. I just...got it," Han answered, not wanting to mention that he had gotten it by winning a card game.

"I would like to see it sometime."

"Yes, Your Highness."

* * *

"I'm not pregnant," Ryoo said as she came outside onto the hotel room's balcony. There were a couple of benches and a small table, nothing extremely fancy. 

Kev hugged her. "It's alright. We can keep trying."

She smiled faintly and touched one of his lekku for a moment, then returned the hug.

"I don't think I should try to call Pooja," she said. "She might not answer, since the Sith are probably following us."

"Good idea. I don't think she'll try to call you, either." Kev carefully pressed his hand against his wife's cheek. Twi'leks' fingernails could be sharp if they let them grow a little. Kev often trimmed his to avoid accidently scratching Ryoo.

"I guess there's no use staying here and waiting for her to call us, then," she said.

"Not really. Why don't we go out and get something to eat?"

"Okay."


	19. Chapter Nineteen

Author's note: I want to know if anybody would like me to update Wherever You Go (it's on hiatus right now). Thanks. 

**Chapter Nineteen**

Darth Amidala wanted to cancel dinner with her parents. She knew it was going to be awkward, knowing that she was tracking down her own two nieces - her parents' granddaughters - without telling her children that the two Jedi were their cousins.

But Darth Vader told her they were going, whether it made her uncomfortable or not. This was a good opportunity to find out what her parents did or did not know. She agreed. Trying to avoid Ruwee and Jobal was stupid, and she was not going to let them or her past bother her. As for Vader, she appreciated his harshness, knowing that he was only helping her. He kept her from becoming too weak. She wondered if she was beginning to love him even more than she had already.

Vader did have one or two plans of his own, even though he did not like hiding anything from his wife. His main goal was to show Ruwee and Jobal how happy Amidala was, and make them think that she did not really need them at all, and had only tracked them down out of a little bit of kindness. That was mostly true, anyway. She could have brought up the idea of looking for them years ago, but had chosen not to.

They were meeting Jobal and Ruwee at a restaurant in the Lake Country - one of their spies had found out that Ruwee's cousin owned it, so they would probably be familiar with the place. Amidala wanted them to be a little comfortable.

"Perhaps you should hide your presence," Amidala suggested. She hesitated before getting into the speeder.

"If you think they will talk more easily," Vader said.

"I do. You can bring me there and then leave. I will make something up."

"Very well."

Amidala hugged her husband before getting into the speeder, wondering if her parents might suspect that Vader was still watching somehow, even after he concealed his presence. She did not worry about it too much, though. Her parents most likely expected her to tell Vader all about their conversation, anyway.

Once they were both inside the speeder, she reached over and kissed her husband's shoulder - she could not reach his face without almost getting up on her knees, since he was much bigger than her. He grasped her throat with one hand and gently squeezed. She smiled playfully.

"Are you sure that you don't want to call them and say that we cannot come?" she asked, stroking the hand around her throat for a second. She removed it and kissed it.

"We will not stay long," he replied, starting the speeder.

* * *

Pooja Naberrie was having a surprisingly good day, other than feeling a few touches of guilt for worrying Ryoo. But she managed to ignore those.

She went to a couple of stores and bought - well, stole, with mind tricks - some clothes, since she did not think she would be crawling back to her sister and Kev right away. She might be staying at the hotel for another week.

After shopping, she went to a café and overheard two Twi'lek girls talking about a concert they were on their way to. She followed them to one of the large parks and stayed for more than three hours. More than a few males bothered her - but one or two of them were genuinely friendly.

Pooja smiled to herself as she opened the door to her hotel room. She definately had not thought about dating, but there was no reason why she could not, was there? She was mad at Ryoo for hiding her and Kev's marriage, not the fact that she had gotten married.

Her smile disappeared when she saw who was waiting for her - Rafael Aryies. He was standing in the middle of the living room area.

_Great_, Pooja thought. _There's a Sith here, and I'm by myself. No, wait. I don't need Ryoo here to take care of me_.

She silently fumed at her sister for a moment before even saying anything to Rafael.

"You guys found me," she said.

"Actually," he replied, "I came looking for you on my own. Luke and Mara and Leia did not send me."

Pooja sensed that he was being honest. "Wonderful! I can tell your parents that you're all grown up and found a Jedi by yourself!"

Rafael smiled briefly, and suddenly felt a bit of attraction rise in Pooja. And of course, it was _genuine_ - his Falleen attraction pheromones would not work on a Force-strong girl. She even blushed faintly, knowing that he detected the feeling.

"Have you told any of the other Sith that I...that Ryoo and I got separated?" she asked, not caring to ask how he had found her. The flirty feeling started to fade.

"I have been following the two of you, and then followed _you_ here. Why didn't Ryoo come?"

"I'm not telling you." Pooja smiled. "So, are you going to take me to the others? We had better get going."

"Not exactly. I have my own idea," Rafael said, removing the thin red, long-sleeved shirt he was wearing. Underneath was another shirt of the same color, but sleeveless. It could not hurt to try flirting with Pooja some more, if it would be useful.

"Pardon me," he added politely. "It is a little warm in here. I might call someone to look at the air conditioning."

"What? Are you planning on staying here for the night?" Pooja asked, heading over to the kitchen area. "I'm just getting a drink. Don't attack me. Want anything?"

Rafael followed her. "No, thank you. Cooperate with me for the time being. As I was saying, I have an idea."

"I don't care about your idea."

"I will help you."

"What makes you think I need help?" Pooja asked, taking a water bottle out of the refridgerator.

Rafael watched her. "Fine. One of the maids in the hotel is a spy. She overheard your entire arguement about Ryoo being married."

Pooja sighed.

"Do not be foolish," Rafael added, coming closer to her. He tried resting his hand on her shoulder.

"I give up. What do you want?" she asked. She did not seem excited, but did not try to shrug his hand away.

"Good. Listen to me."


	20. Chapter Twenty

Author's note: At Your Side is on hiatus for right now, since I've started updating Wherever You Go again and I'd like to have just two current stories right now. 

**Chapter Twenty**

Pooja Naberrie listened to Rafael Aryies as he explained his plan. Not only did she not like it, she did not think it would work well, even if she did agree to cooperate with him. She decided she would have to for the time being.

She hesitated, then asked, "Leia is the one who wanted to end your engagement, isn't she?"

"Yes," Rafael answered.

"Even if a little jealousy does make her want you again, it won't work," Pooja said. "If you're...playing around with me instead of turning me in to Lord Vader, you're going to be in trouble."

"Leia _will_ be upset by this. I am sure of it."

"You're being too confident." Pooja finished the rest of the water in the bottle she was holding. "I would tell you that even if you were on my side. Leia is not going get depressed and have a breakdown. She'll report you to her parents - and I don't think that _your_ parents will be very happy, either."

"Whether this will work is not your concern," Rafael said, looking at her. "I will worry about that. You will do what I want. Do you understand?"

She nodded, deciding she would need a little time to think of something.

"Good. Give me your lightsaber."

Pooja unclipped it from her belt, but hesitated. "Why don't I attack you?"

"That would be stupid," Rafael replied, even though he knew that she was not being serious. They were standing in the small kitchen area, and Pooja was almost in the corner - not enough room for her to even swing her lightsaber.

"No," she said, mostly as a distraction, and tried taking a step to the side.

He knew what she was doing, and moved in front of her, standing just a few inches away now. She sighed, looking depressed now, and gave him the weapon, then tried going past him again. He let her. Her shoulder brushed against his arm.

"Thank you," he said. "Do not try anything foolish."

She glanced at the floor, not saying anything. This would not be good for her - even if Leia did suddenly want Rafael back, and he did not get into trouble, Pooja was still captured. In addition to that, she still felt a little anger toward Ryoo.

"I'm hungry," she said. "I'm going to call room service."

* * *

"_Me_? Why wouldn't _you_ let her get that cat she wanted?" Jobal was saying as Amidala and Vader entered the private room at the restaurant, hidden.

Before her father had to respond, Amidala made herself visible again. She suddenly did not like to see them argue.

"M-My Lord. My Lady," Ruwee said, bowing his head. He felt strange knowing that he was bowing to his daughter, but he did not want to do anything to annoy her or his son-in-law.

"Hello," Amidala replied. She looked up at Vader. "I will see you in an hour."

"Y-You aren't staying?" Jobal asked, looking obviously relieved.

"No. I will be back later," Vader answered.

Amidala held onto his arm for another second before letting go. He went through the open archway that led into the room, then hid his presence and came back inside, unseen to Ruwee and Jobal. Amidala gave him a small smile, then went and sat down at the table with her parents.

Ruwee thought that she looked beautiful. She was wearing a sleeveless orange-red dress, and her hair was down and curled slightly. There was something strange, though - she did not look very upset. Ruwee remembered the way she had clung to Vader the other day. He was surprised that her husband was leaving her alone for a whole hour. Perhaps he was still nearby.

The food had already been arranged. An agent had looked at the Naberrie's records and made sure that none of them were allergic to anything, then made a reservation at the restaurant.

"I hope you like fish," Amidala said. "I wanted to get it while we still have a chance. You know how some of the restaurants here stop importing seafood during this time of the year."

"It's fine, My Lady," Jobal replied. "Thank you."

Ruwee smiled politely and glanced at the other side of the small room, wondering if there was a hidden camera somewhere, from which Vader could be watching them. He shivered and thought of whispering something to Jobal, but did not want to make Amidala suspicious.

Jobal made a fake smile. "May I ask what part of the Lake Country you live in, My Lady?"

"We don't live on this side of Naboo," Amidala lied, then realized that they would wonder why she was so familiar with the area. "We have a vacation house here."

Vader, still unseen, was standing a few feet away from her. She took a bite of her fish and tried to think of an excuse to leave.

"Is Mara Jade - Her Highness - doing well?" Ruwee asked. "We read about..."

"She is fine," Amidala answered.

Jobal held her hand up to her forehead. Ruwee glanced at her.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I don't feel well," she said.

Amidala knew she was pretending, but did not mind, although she had not gotten much information out of her parents.

"You should go," she said. "You don't look well."

Jobal made a fake cough. "Oh, no, My Lady..."

"Go," Amidala told her. "I will call you tomorrow and see if you are feeling better. We can have tea, perhaps."

"Yes, My Lady," Jobal said. "Thank you."

"Of course. Good night."

"Good night, My Lady," Ruwee replied.

As soon as he and Jobal were out of sight, Amidala hid her own presence and took Vader's arm again. She wondered if the cook was going to be insulted when he or she saw that not much of the food had been eaten, but she did not really care.

When she and Vader were inside their speeder, a tear suddenly went down her cheek, then she began crying softly. It was mostly anger and frustration. She had expected her parents to dislike her a little at first, but she was already getting impatient.

"They will want you," Vader said, touching her hand.

"They know that I am fine. Maybe I should leave them alone now."

"If you wish. Ignore them and see how they react to it."

Amidala sniffled. "I think I may try that."

"Very well." Vader touched her wet cheek, then started the speeder.

* * *

"I am wondering," Pooja said as she sat down at the table outside the kitchen area, "did you and the other Sith know about Ryoo's marriage already?"

She had ordered over a hundred credits of food from room service, like she had last night, and barely felt bad about not paying for any of it. She thought of sending the hotel some money when she had a few hundred credits, though.

"No," Rafael answered honestly. He took a sip of water. "Have you told Obi-Wan or Hallie?"

"No. I've been thinking about calling them, but I don't know. Maybe she's already told them herself."

"I think she will try to find you first."

"Probably." Pooja shrugged. "Are you also trying to catch her, using me?"

"No. I am only using you to attract Leia," Rafael said.

He stared at the fork he was holding, and just for a second, he looked almost sad. Pooja felt it. She sighed, feeling alone, but not badly enough that she wanted to try escaping Rafael and going back to her sister.

He looked at her. "We will go to the Yavin system tomorrow?"

"Why there?"

"One or two of my personal spies will catch us having fun together, and a few photographs will get out to the magazines," Rafael explained. "Perhaps Obi-Wan or Hallie or Ryoo will see them, too."

Pooja nodded. She liked that idea.


	21. Chapter TwentyOne

Author's note: Sorry for not updating this story in almost two weeks. 

**Chapter Twenty-One**

Pooja and Rafael took a transport to Yavin Four. Pooja was not surprised. She guessed that Rafael did not want his parents or Darth Vader to somehow hear that a blonde human girl had been with him.

Rafael had given Pooja a credit card before they left Dantooine, so that she could get a few new clothes. She supposed that made sense. Leia, Obi-Wan, Hallie, Ryoo, and the others were going to think that she and Rafael were together, so they would probably assume that her new boyfriend had bought her a few expensive gifts and let her go shopping.

He had even allowed Pooja to leave the hotel by herself, which would have been a good chance to escape - but he still had her lightsaber. So she promised to be back within three hours.

The transport they took was nice. Rafael had reserved a private room on it. Pooja did not say much during the first couple of hours. She nodded or shook her head when he asked if she wanted anything. She wanted to take a nap, but since they only had a single room with an adjoining refresher, she was not going to fall asleep with Rafael watching her. If he happened to go somewhere, she might have a chance to try to leave.

After two hours, she gave up on him leaving her alone. The silence was starting to make her a little bored, anyway.

"I was wondering something," she said softly, in case their room had surveillance.

"Yes?" Rafael came over to the couch and sat next to her.

She slid a few inches away. "Well...I was thinking about you and your parents, and I'm a little surprised that you get along with Lord Vader and his family so well - or you seem to."

"Lord Vader helped my parents..." Rafael started. "Why is that surprising?"

"Obi-Wan and Hallie told Ryoo and I that the original group of Sith destroyed each other, which is why someone decided that there should only be two at one time."

"That is true, but Palpatine gave up that rule when he and Alana found Lord Vader and Lady Amidala," Rafael said. His voice was friendly. He seemed pleased that Pooja was interested in this.

"But there's several of you. You don't fight or plot against each other?" she asked.

"No," Rafael replied, "we are friends. I bet we get along better than you and the other Jedi do - considering you decided to run away from your sister, and you wouldn't talk to either of your masters even if I let you go."

Pooja started to snap at him, but changed her mind. She knew he was right.

She changed the subject. "Well, your parents are going to be pretty mad when they find out that you're with me."

"Leia will be angry," Rafael insisted, still sounding determined. "She will be jealous, and beg her parents to let her deal with this."

"That's still too risky. _If_ she is mad and _if_ she wants to deal with you, you don't know that her parents will let her."

"I told you that it is not your concern."

Pooja became quiet again, deciding that she was not going to be able to make him change his mind. Why did she care about helping him, anyway? She was already captured. She might as well enjoy seeing Leia reject Rafael.

* * *

The hangar was small, only big enough for the one ship that was here. Leia Vader looked around again, to make sure that nobody else was around, then un-hid her presence and removed the hood of her thin red cloak from her head. Underneath, she was wearing a long-sleeved shirt and pants, also red. She hoped it _was_ Han Solo that she had seen going in here, or else she would have to use a temporary mind-erase trick on whoever it was.

After a minute, Han came out. He was surprised to see her, of course - he had not mentioned that he was going to be on Tattooine - and he guessed that this was some kind of reminder that she had her eyes on him.

"Your Highness. What are you doing here?" he asked. "I mean, I am...uh, pleasantly surprised to see you..."

"Relax," she said. "I am here for a few days. I just happened to see you. Is this the _Millenium Falcon_?"

"Yeah - I mean, yes, ma'am," Han answered.

"I like it."

"Thank you."

Leia thought for a moment. "If there are any parts you need, let me know. I want you to use only this ship for your...assignments."

Han was not completely bothered by that. "Can I ask why?"

"It isn't an Imperial shuttle. You'll hide yourself more easily."

"Oh, yeah, of course."

For a second, Leia was quiet again, almost as if she were nervous. Han was sure he was imagining it, though.

"I was wondering if..." she began, but stopped when someone came through the open doorway behind her. "There you are, Daddy."

"Yes," Vader replied, resting his hand on her shoulder. He glanced at Han suspiciously.

"Daddy, this is the _Millenium Falcon_," Leia said.

"Impressive," he replied. Han guessed that he was being sarcastic.

Leia looked a little uneasy. "We should go. I will see you later, Han."

"Your Highness," he said, bowing his head.

As soon as they were gone, he went to the room at the back section of the hangar, which he used as an apartment. Briefly, he thought of moving, but Leia had said that they were just here for a few days. Perhaps they would not come by again before they left. Actually, he had not really minded seeing Leia.


	22. Chapter TwentyTwo

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

Pooja was stuck with Rafael for the next two days. They returned to the hotel on Dantooine that she had been staying in. There were no awkward moments between them for now. She ignored him most of the time, and just nodded or shook her head whenever he asked her something. He stayed in the hotel suite's bedroom, and she was fine with staying on the comfortable couch in the living room area.

Taking the pictures had not been very awkward, either. They had just sat on a bench beside a lake, in a park, and talked some. Pooja was still a little excited about Obi-Wan, Hallie, and Ryoo seeing the pictures, so she cooperated when Rafael put his arm around her or held her hand.

At the moment, she was sitting on the couch, watching a holomovie. Rafael had gone somewhere almost an hour ago, and there was not much stopping Pooja from leaving the hotel, but she was not going to try, since she did not know where he had gone. He might catch her while she was on her way to the transport station. He also had her lightsaber, and she had not thought of way to try to get it.

She looked up as the door to the room opened. Rafael came in, carrying a magazine with him.

* * *

"Daddy!" Leia yelled as she entered the ship - she and her parents had decided to stay in it instead of a hotel.

"What's wrong?" Amidala asked as she came into the cockpit area.

Leia gave her the magazine. She had followed a boy into a small grocery store - concealing her presence, of course - thinking that he was Han. When she got closer, she saw that it was not him, which made her feel stupid. On her way out, she took the magazine out of boredom. As soon as she looked through the first couple of pages, she saw the pictures of Pooja and Rafael.

Vader came up behind Amidala, sliding his arms around her, and glanced at the magazine.

"Is this a joke?" Leia asked quietly. She could not think of anything she had done to make her parents mad, and they definately would not set up something like this to punish her.

"_No_," Amidala answered honestly. "Why wouldn't he tell us that he found Pooja already?"

"I don't know," Leia replied, not sure how she felt right now. "Do his parents _know_ that he caught her?"

"I doubt it," Vader told her.

"We will talk with them, Leia," Amidala added. "For now, do not try to contact Rafael. Do you understand?"

Leia nodded. She did not want to talk to him, anyway. She was angry - Rafael should have brought Pooja to her parents if he had found her. But just for a second, she was almost jealous. She glanced at her parents, not wanting them to detect it.

"I'm going to go lay down," she said.

* * *

Pooja was hungry, but did not feel like ordering room service. She thought of asking Rafael if they could go out somewhere.

She looked up as he came into the living room area again, only wearing black pants. She turned the viewing screen on again, pretending to ignore him, but then noticed something. He did not have any kind of belt on with the pants, and was shirtless, so her lightsaber - and his - did not seem to be on him at the moment.

"I appreciate your cooperation," he said, sitting next to her on the couch. His tone was calm, he seemed to be in a decent mood.

Pooja nodded and glanced at the entrance to the bedroom. He might have left the sabers in there. Maybe he had not even tried to hide them. She would need an excuse to go and look.

She turned off the viewing screen and glanced at Rafael again. She could not try struggling with him - he was bigger than her, and had his Falleen claws. It would be best not to annoy him.

"Is something wrong?" he asked her, sounding a bit suspicious.

She did not give him a clear answer. "I wonder what Hallie and Obi-Wan are going to do when they see those pictures."

"What about Ryoo and Kev?"

"If Ryoo sees them first, she might be surprised enough to tell Hallie and Obi-wan about them. She'll have to..."

"...and they will wonder why the two of you are separated, and then she will have to tell them about Kev," Rafael finished.

"I guess so." Pooja smiled and looked at the entrance to the bedroom again, trying to think of what she could do.

"Why don't we order room service?" Rafael asked, lightly touching her hand.

There was a hint of attraction in his mood, just for a second, but he quickly crushed it - most likely by thinking about Leia, Pooja guessed. Ordering dinner was a good idea, though, it would give her time to think of something.

"Alright. I am hungry," she said.


	23. Chapter TwentyThree

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

After ordering their food, Pooja went back to the couch and sat beside Rafael again - deliberately sitting close enough that they were almost touching. At the moment, though, he did not seem to really notice. He seemed to be deep in thought about something or someone, probably Leia. Pooja half-considered getting up now, while he was not paying attention, and trying to go into the bedroom to look for her lightsaber. But she did not want to risk it.

_And admit it - part of you likes sitting with him_.

She pushed that thought away and looked at him. "So, what do your parents think about the magazine? Did they see it?"

"I told you, that is my concern," he replied. He took her hand, but looked distantly at it, as if he were still thinking about Leia.

"I apologize," Pooja said quietly.

"I know what you are trying to do. It will not work."

"Oh?"

"Trying to point out every problem with my plans," Rafael said, still holding the Jedi's hand. He lightly stroked it with one of the claws on his other hand. "Do not try to trick me. I may trick _you_."

"Maybe," Pooja replied, twisting her hand around a little. She slipped her fingers between his and squeezed slightly. "If we end up battling each other, I think it will be fun."

_Damn_, she thought, wishing she had not mentioned fighting - she did not want to hint that she was thinking about her lightsaber.

"Or you may end up battling someone else," said Rafael, letting go of her hand.

"What do you mean?"

There was a buzz from the room's door. Pooja made an obvious glance at Rafael, then got up. He could sense her feelings and know that she did not want him, but since she really did think he was attractive, she might be able to fool him a little. For a moment, she knew that was a dumb idea. But if her attraction to him was going to be useful in distracting him, so that she could go look for her lightsaber, she had to use it, didn't she? Obi-Wan or Hallie would probably try the same thing if either of them were in this situation.

As she walked over to the door and let the two maids inside, Rafael went into the bedroom, probably to put a shirt on.

Once the maids left, Pooja sat down at the table. She realized that she still did not know what to do once she escaped. She would have to keep hiding from the Sith, and she had not seriously considered going back to Ryoo, Obi-Wan, and Hallie.

_"Or you may end up battling someone else."_

She looked up as Rafael came into the dining area. He had just put a red robe on over his black pants, and left it open. He still did not appear to have any lightsabers on him.

She shivered. Looking down at the white pants she was wearing, along with a white top that had two thin straps, she finally had an idea that might work.

"Can I borrow one of your shirts?" she asked. "It's a cold in here."

"Here," Rafael said, and started to take off his robe. That was good - he would not have volunteered to give it to her if he had Pooja's lightsaber hidden inside any of its pockets.

"No. Nevermind," she said quickly. "It's kind of warm, actually. I'm fine."

He looked at her suspiciously, but said nothing. She ignored him and started eating her taun-taun steak, trying to think of what to do.

* * *

Author's note: I know that this chapter was short and didn't get anywhere, but I haven't updated this story in almost a week, so I wanted to post something. Next one will be better. 


	24. Chapter TwentyFour

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

"_No_," Kyleeza Aryies insisted. "Zaron and I are just as angry as you."

Darth Amidala hesitated before saying anything. They were talking by holograph. As soon as she, Vader, and Leia arrived on Imperial City tomorrow, they would talk to Kyleeza and Zaron in person, so that they could sense if either of them was being dishonest.

"We will see you tomorrow," Amidala said calmly. She sounded somewhat convinced, but Kyleeza was not relaxed.

Amidala turned off the transmission pad and left the small room, then went back to the front of the ship.

Leia was sitting in one of the seats in the cockpit, looking a little distant, but there was no trace of sadness or jealousy in her. Darth Vader seemed to notice it, also, but neither he or Amidala said anything.

After a moment, Leia said, "I want to go talk to Han for a moment, before we leave tomorrow."

"It's almost dark outside," Amidala replied. Of course, a twenty-year-old Sith could walk to a place that was five minutes away, but she was actually concerned about Leia wanting to see a young, single man all of a sudden, since seeing the pictures of Rafael with Pooja...

Leia guessed what her mother - and her father, too, most likely - were thinking.

"I just have to tell him something," she said softly.

She was not annoyed by their suspicions, mainly because she herself was starting to wonder what she was doing - making Han her personal assistant, for example. But that had been before Leia had learned about Pooja and Rafael, so this was not just coming from jealous anger.

"Go," Vader said.

Leia went to the back room of the ship to get one of her cloaks, then left.

* * *

Again, Leia concealed her presence as she entered Han's private hanger. She looked around, not seeing anyone else. Han was just coming out of the back section. Leia knew he used it as his apartment; she had asked him once about where his house was. He had not revealed that he lived on Tattooine, but one of Leia's other spies informed her of that. 

"Your Highness," he said when he saw her. She was wearingblack pants and a dark brown shirt underneath a warm black cloak. It was already getting cool outside.

"I apologize for bothering you again. I hope you don't mind," she said, suddenly realizing that she felt almost...nervous, almost as nervous as she had when it was announced that she and Rafael were engaged.

"Of course not, My Lady." Han noticed the magazine she was holding in one hand.

She flipped through it and opened it, then handed it to him.

"Rafael and Pooja, one of the Jedi I told you about," she said.

"They're...?"

"I believe this is some kind of game that Rafael is playing, but I am not sure," Leia answered. "Have you seen them together anywhere?"

"No...I mean, no, My Lady," Han said, detecting something - the princess was not really bothered by this at all. He was sure about it. She almost sounded like she was just trying to make conversation.

"Tell me if you do, and keep that with you," she said, glancing at the magazine in his hands. She paused, then continued, "My parents and I are going to Imperial City tomorrow. I want you to be there in two days, but do not go to any of the bases."

"Yes, My Lady."

"I will contact you later and tell you when to meet me."

"Yes, My Lady," Han said again, still having the stupid feeling that she had just made up some excuse to come here. He wondered what she had wanted to ask him before, before Vader showed up, but decided not to bother her about it.

"Good night," she replied. She turned away and left.

* * *

During dinner, Rafael was in a distant mood. Again, Pooja guessed that he was thinking of Leia. He went to bed early, meaning that Pooja could not go into his room and look for her lightsaber until tomorrow. Maybe he had even suspected that she was trying to plan something, but for some reason, she doubted it. 

She was about to lay down on the couch in the living room area, but paused when she suddenly felt three faint, familiar presences - Obi-Wan, Ryoo, and Hallie.

For a moment, she stared in the direction of the door to the bedroom, waiting for Rafael to come out and say something. But he did not. Pooja guessed that he had sensed the three presences, but he did not know who they were, since he was not as familiar with them as Pooja was. Either that, or he had already fallen asleep and was unaware of them.

Pooja was not happy. She could escape from Rafael on her own. She did not want to see her sister or either of her teachers.

She lay down on the couch, and was asleep a few minutes later.


	25. Chapter TwentyFive

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

Pooja did not sleep for very long. Their was a buzz from the room's intercom, which was just a maid who had accidently called the wrong room. After the maid apologized and disconnected, Pooja went back to the couch.

She closed her eyes for a moment, focusing on the three Jedi presences. They seemed to be a little closer than they had been when she fell asleep, but not enough to bother her. She suddenly had a new idea - why not tell Rafael that they were here? That might distract him enough for her to look for her lightsaber.

She got up and went to the bedroom's door. It was just closing as she approached. He was still awake; he must have been disturbed by the comm from the maid. Pooja had a feeling, though, that he had probably not been sleeping well before that.

_Leia_, she thought. She hesitated a moment, then buzzed the door. Briefly, she was almost jealous. The Sith allowed marriages. If the Jedi would just allow them, Ryoo would not have had to hide hers for six years.

_That's not an excuse_, Pooja thought angrily as Rafael opened the door. _She could have told _me_, at least_.

"What is it?" Rafael asked her.

She got right to the point. "Obi-Wan, Ryoo, and Hallie are here. I sensed them arriving earlier. You probably aren't familiar enough with them to recognize their presences..."

Rafael looked at her for a moment, sensing that she was being honest. "Thank you. What makes you want to tell me?"

"I want to leave - I mean, I would like it if we could leave, please."

"Really?"

"Yes," Pooja said softly. "I do not want to see them."

Rafael looked at her again, longer this time, then said, "It is a shame that one of the Sith did not find you first."

"Why do you say that?"

"Get your things. We will go."

Pooja, without thinking, stood up on her toes and kissed his cheek. "Thank you."

She started to turn away, but he quickly slid his arm around her, careful not to accidently scratch her with one of his claws. She looked at him, noticing his skin was a lighter shade of green now. He pulled her closer to him and kissed her mouth, but she did not return it.

"Will you let me go?" she asked sadly. "Please?"

"You do not want to see your friends," Rafael said.

"No, but..." Pooja paused. "I know you sense that I have been awkward around you."

"Yes."

"But you are going to turn me over to the other Sith, anyway..." Pooja became quiet again, not sure what to say. She suddenly felt very lonely.

Rafael kissed her cheek. "We will leave now."

She nodded distantly and went back to the living room.

* * *

"I think that it would be best if I went to her, Ryoo," Hallie said as the four of them sat down inside a diner, at a table in one of the back corners. 

"She is very angry with me..." Ryoo started. Underneath the table, Kev rested his hand on her leg.

"...which is why Hallie should go," Obi-Wan interrupted. "She may be able to talk to Pooja more easily."

"Exactly," Hallie agreed, glancing at Kev with her blue eyes. Her shoulder-length hair was the same red shade as Obi-Wan's, which made them look more like brother and sister than cousins.

Kev glared at her for just a second. He did not like the way they were speaking to Ryoo, or they way they barely tried to understand her reasons for hiding her marriage. But in addition to that, he knew he was the only person here who was not Force-sensitive. More than once, he had wondered why Ryoo even wanted him.

"Fine," Ryoo gave in.

Kev looked at his wife and whispered, in Twi'lek, "You should go deal with her. What if she's in danger and needs help? Stop letting them push you around."

"We are close. I would sense it if she were danger," Ryoo answered, in a somewhat know-it-all tone. She noticed her teachers staring at them, and switched back to Basic. "What do you want us to do?"

"Stay here," answered Obi-Wan.

"Why I don't leave?" Kev suggested bitterly, already standing up. "Then you three can handle this, and I won't get in your way."

"Kev!" Ryoo said, getting up. "What is wrong with you?"

He just left without answering.

Ryoo started to say something to Hallie and Obi-Wan, then turned and went after Kev.


	26. Chapter TwentySix

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

Leia Vader and her parents did not have to ask Kyleeza and Zaron many questions during their meeting at the main base on Imperial City. The two of them were angry with their son, and they honestly said that they had nothing to do with his plans.

Leia, standing beside Darth Vader, was mostly quiet. Zaron noticed it, and could not sense any anger in her. She was not very upset about Rafael and Pooja. He supposed he could not really blame her, since she had never been very enthusiastic about marrying Rafael. She had probably been relieved when the wedding was cancelled.

Zaron knew how unhappy his son had been, though. Rafael loved Leia. That was most likely the reason behind this thing with Pooja.

"He hasn't been acting different lately," Kyleeza was saying. "Leia, has he tried to contact you?"

"No," she answered, feeling a little impatient. She wanted to leave so that she could contact Han and tell him when to meet her. But first, she had to think of an excuse for wanting him to meet her.

"We will send Mara and Luke to find him," Darth Amidala said.

Leia looked at her. "What? Shouldn't _I_ go? If he's trying to get my attention..."

"No," her mother interrupted.

"I don't think that would be best," Kyleeza agreed.

Leia did not try to protest. If she just agreed with them, she could leave sooner.

"Thank you for your patience. I barely have any," Zaron said.

* * *

After he and Kyleeza left, Leia asked her parents, "Are you sure that I shouldn't go with Luke and Mara?" 

"You will stay here," Vader replied. "When Rafael hears of you and Han, he may come here on his own."

"What do you mean? There's nothing..."

"Leia, do you think we don't sense your feelings when you mention him?" Amidala asked quietly, sitting down on one of the black couches.

Leia looked at her. "I don't know him very well yet."

"Yet?"

"I mean, I don't like the idea of using him. He has not been working for me long. This isn't going to increase his loyalty to me."

"He may enjoy it," Vader said in a suspicious tone.

"Daddy..." Leia started, then was quiet for a second. "Is there some kind of trick behind this? Anything at all?"

"Only to Kyleeza and Zaron," Amidala answered honestly. "We gave them the impression that we did not want you to go with Mara and Luke. But you and Han will help them."

_Me and Han_. Leia nodded. She did not really dislike the idea.

"Should I invite him to Kyleeza's birthday party tomorrow?" she asked.

"Yes. Call your brother and Mara, and remind them about it," Amidala said, glad that her daughter felt better.

Leia came over to the couch and hugged her, then left.

* * *

Han was already on Imperial City, even though Leia had first told him that he did not have to be here until tomorrow. He met with her less than an hour later, at the hanger where the _Millenium Falcon_ was. Hopefully, she would not ask him a lot of questions about the ship, because one or two things were not working well at the moment. 

"I appreciate you being here sooner than I expected," she said, sitting down on the edge of the seat that curved around the game board.

"Yes, My Lady," Han replied, standing a few feet away from her.

She looked at him for a second, focusing. There was a touch of annoyance. He probably did not want her to be here right now. She felt stupid.

"Lady Kyleeza's birthday is tomorrow. There is going to be a party for her, at the gardens - the place that's a few minutes away from here," she said. The same one that she and Rafael had gone to, for the opening.

_"Having an arranged marriage doesn't bother you at all? Do you ever wonder what it would be like to find someone on your own?"_

_"You are the one I would want to find."_

"Yeah...I mean, yes, ma'am," Han answered.

"I want you to be there," Leia said, standing up. "I will make sure that you are allowed inside. And, here..."

She gave him two cards, which were each worth five thousand credits. She probably assumed that he did not have many fancy outfits. He felt more embarassed, and could not wait for her to leave.

She detected the annoyance in him again, and quickly added, "Just to thank you for your cooperation so far."

"Of course, My Lady," he replied.

She walked past him and went outside - he had left the boarding ramp down. He watched her for a second, then went to get his comlink. He would have to tell Lando and the others that he could not play cards tomorrow night, and needed to think of a good excuse. None of his friends knew about him working for Leia, of course.


	27. Chapter TwentySeven

**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

Ryoo Naberrie had managed to calm Kev down the other night, but he seemed to still be a little annoyed with her. She had not tried to talk about it.

The two of them rented a hotel room. Ryoo impatiently waited for Hallie or Obi-Wan to contact her. They had all sensed that Pooja and Rafael weregone now. They had probably left Dantooine. Ryoo had given up on trying to mentally connect with her sister. She never got an answer.

* * *

Han spent most of the afternoon looking for clothes. He bought several new outfits, guessing that this wasn't going to be the first time that Leia wanted him to go to a fancy event. He lied and told Lando and the others that he had a date, even though he was not sure that that was the reason why Leia wanted him at the party. 

Later, as he was entering the hangar where the _Millenium Falcon_ was, he thought of Rafael and Pooja again, and then realized what was going on - Leia wanted Rafael to hear that she was with someone. That irritated Han. He had never had to do stupid stuff like this when he was just doing repairs and maintenance at the base and piloting shuttles. For just one second, he almost had enough courage to tell her to get someone else to be her personal assistant, but then Darth Vader came to his mind.

* * *

Mara Jade had not felt like coming to Kyleeza's party. She felt a little sick, and was almost sure that she was pregnant again, but she had only told Luke about it. 

Leia had not wanted to come to the party, either, but she could not stay home - Rafael's parents might think that she was upset about the meeting that they'd had yesterday.

Mara agreed. She looked around the room. It was lovely. Several small trees and flowers had been arranged everywhere, and a small group of musicians were playing in one corner, near a large fountain. Mara had last counted twenty other guests. Kyleeza and Zaron were on the other side of the room, talking to another Falleen couple.

"Han isn't here yet," Mara said, looking at her sister-in-law. They were both wearing purple dresses. Leia's was a light shade, Mara's was darker. She was wearing a diamond necklace that Luke had given her during their honeymoon.

Luke stood between the two girls. The three of them were almost isolated in the corner. None of the other guests had been brave enough to approach them.

"I told him to be here a few minutes late," Leia replied, "and not to come over to me. Look, there he is now."

"You asked him to be here, but not to talk to you?" Mara asked, glancing at Luke.

"I...he'll be nervous if he has to meet you two," Leia said.

Mara smiled faintly. Leia became quiet. On the other side of the room, Han recognized two Zabrak men he knew, and started talking to them. The black pants and white shirt he had chosen were nice, but Leia knew that he did not really want to be here. She started to consider letting him go and making him pilot and work on the ships at one of the bases again. He had liked that.

* * *

Han looked over at Leia once while talking to his two friends, noticing that she was still with her brother and Mara, and then pretended that he was not paying attention to her. He supposed that she would come over herself if she wanted to talk to him. 

He quickly glanced at her one more time. She did look beautiful. He somehow got the impression that she did not want to be here, and felt surprisingly sorry for thinking of her so badly earlier.

* * *

Instead of taking a transport, Rafael and Pooja had bought a ship. Actually, Rafael had used a mind trick on the Twi'lek man selling it. Pooja protested about that. She felt guilty enough for not paying for the hotel room they had stayed in. Rafael gave in and used another trick to make the man accept three-hundred-and-fifty credits. 

The ship was very nice. It was light grey, and only a little smaller than an Imperial shuttle. The bedroom in the back had red carpet and two black couches, and the sink and oven in the kitchen area both worked. After seeing everything, Pooja had felt bad for not giving the seller more money.

Right now, she was just opening her eyes. She had come back to the bedroom, to take a nap, right after they landed the ship on Tattooine.

The first thing she noticed was that she did not feel her sister's presence, or Hallie's or Obi-Wan's, which meant that none of the Jedi had followed them. Then she realized how much she had started thinking of _them_ as Jedi, but not herself.

After a moment, she got up and went to the front of the ship.

* * *

Luke, Mara, and Leia left after barely more than an hour. They walked past Han on their way out. Leia just smiled at him, without saying anything. He decided to stay for a little while, in case she wanted him to. 

He started to go over to his two friends again, but paused when Zaron Aryies brushed against him.

"Excuse me," Zaron said, then stopped and studied Han for a second.

"Hello, sir," he replied politely.

"Who are you?"

"Han Solo, sir."

"Oh." Zaron shook his hand and smiled, but seemed suspicious. "Who are you here with? I couldn't keep track of everyone Kyleeza invited."

"Leia - Her Highness," Han answered. He had wanted to lie, but he always felt uncomfortable when he thought of lying to Leia, as if she would know he was being dishonest, and he had a feeling that Zaron would, also.

"Are you a...friend of hers?"

"I work for her."

"I see," Zaron said. "Have a nice evening."

"You, too, sir," Han replied.

He watched, and as soon as Zaron was over on the other side of the room, beside Kyleeza, he left.


	28. Chapter TwentyEight

Sorry this chapter is short, but I haven't updated it in a week (since I wanted to upload the first chapter of Wherever You Go 2). 

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

Pooja was very surprised when Rafael came into the ship's bedroom and returned her lightsaber to her. She held it for a moment, and tried turning it on. The blade came out. Nothing seemed to be wrong with it.

"I want to practice with you," Rafael said.

"You do?"

"Yes. If you decide to turn this into a real fight, and make me kill you, then it will be your decision."

"I won't," Pooja replied, meaning it. Now that she thought about it, she did want to try practicing with a Sith. It didn't mean she wanted to become one, but if she was going to be a great Jedi, she might as well learn something about an enemy's fighting when she had the chance.

He leaned down a little and lightly kissed her mouth. She started to mention Leia, but changed her mind and walked past him to the front of the ship.

* * *

They practiced for almost an hour. It made Pooja feel great. At first, she was a little skittish, since she half-expected Rafael to really attack her at any second. Once she was more certain that this _was_ just for practice, she fought more viciously.

Rafael thought she was trying to release some of her frustration with Ryoo. He encouraged her, trying to make her see how powerful it made her, but he wasn't sure if she really took the advice or not. He would have to work with her some more. She had a lot of potential. If his parents, Darth Vader, and Darth Amidala did not want to kill him, perhaps he could make them consider giving Pooja a chance.

* * *

"Zaron? What did he say?" Leia asked. She was sitting in her parent's shuttle, talking to Han on her comlink. So far, she had not mentioned that Amidala and Vader were right here. She did not want to make her assistant become cautious about anything he wanted to tell her.

"He asked who had invited me to the party," Han answered.

So far, during the whole conversation, he had only called her "My Lady" once. She did not care. She liked to hear him speaking almost normally to her, as if she were one of his friends.

"Did he sound angry?" she asked.

"Not really. He seemed kinda suspicious."

"Oh. What else did you tell him?"

"Just that I work for you, and that you invited me," said Han.

Leia believed him. She doubted that he would try to lie to her, since she had not told him that she couldn't sense dishonesty when they were talking on comlinks or through a holographic connection.

"Good. I will call you later," she said. She turned the comlink off and noticed her Amidala watching her intently.

"What did he say?" Vader asked, putting his arm around Leia.

"He said Zaron seemed suspicious," she answered, leaning against him. "We should let him or Kyleeza see Han and I together."

"I agree," Amidala said, snuggling underneath Vader's other arm. "Your father and I want Han to go with you and Mara and Luke."

"What? To help us with Rafael and Pooja?"

"Just so they can notice how much time you're spending with him."

Leia liked that idea, although she doubted that her parents would be pleased about her really being interested in Han. She admitted that she was, and they obviously sensed it already. But at least they were not doing anything about it right now. They wanted to deal with Pooja and Rafael first.

She was mostly quiet until they reached the base on Naboo, and on the way to the house.


	29. Chapter TwentyNine

**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

The next afternoon, Han was supposed to meet Leia, Luke, and Mara at the Imperial base on Naboo. He did not want to be late, but in case the three Sith were not coming together, he did not want to get there early and be stuck with Luke and Mara. He knew that Leia was just as strong as them, but he was starting to feel almost comfortable around her.

He left the _Millenium Falcon_ at a landing lot, in a space he owned. The base was nearby, it was visible in the distance. Before, he had been able to walk there in about forty-five minutes.

Just as he was walking away from the ship, a man with light brown hair stopped him. He was wearing a suit with an Imperial logo on it, the same one Han had worn when he was in the maintenance and repairs department.

"Do you want a ride to the base?" he asked.

"Sure," Han said, guessing that Leia had sent him. "Thanks."

They went to a white, four-seat speeder, the kind that was used for riding around the bases. For a moment, Han missed his old job, but he was not sure if he wanted to go back to it. Leia had been annoying at first, but since she had made Han her personal assisstant, he was treated much more nicely around all of the bases and Star Destroyers. Some of the admirals and captains even said hello when they saw him.

Just as the speeder was entering the base's gates, Han remembered that he was supposed to go to a pod race with Lando and a few of his other friends. He had forgotten to tell them that he couldn't go.

* * *

The man also led Han to a small, empty room inside the base's main building, where Leia was waiting. She was wearing black pants and a long-sleeved red shirt. Han forgot about the pod race when she smiled faintly at him. 

"My brother and Mara are at the shuttle," she said. "I wanted to take two shuttles and go there a little earlier than them, so that Rafael can feel my presence first, but Luke doesn't like that idea."

"Yes, My Lady," Han replied, wondering if Luke was trying to keep him from being alone with Leia.

"I want you to call me by my name," she said. "Mara suggested it, so that you appear to be my...friend."

Han thought she seemed nervous as she said that, just for a second - like the other night, when she had started to ask him something before Darth Vader arrived. He still wanted to ask her about that, but had decided not to.

* * *

Inside the shuttle, Han sat beside Leia on the other couch, across from Luke and Mara. He kept some space between him and her, since Luke was probably going to be watching. 

"Hello, Han," Mara said politely, but not in a warm or friendly tone.

"Hello, My Lady," he replied. She was definately beautiful, but he was more interested in watching Leia.

Leia looked at her brother. "I still don't like this."

"You can't try to deal with Rafael and Pooja together," Luke said.

"I don't want to try to fight them by themself. If Rafael just senses me, and if he sees me, he might give in and come back easily."

"_If_ he and Pooja are together," Mara reminded them. "He's probably doing this just to make Leia angry."

"But I'm _not_ angry," Leia said, mostly looking at Han. She glanced at Luke again. "I just think that it's not a good idea for them to sense all three of us arriving. They'll leave before we have time to reach them."

"How did you find out they were on Tattooine?" Han asked.

"One of our spies sold them a ship with a tracking device on it," answered Mara.

"Are you alright? You look tired," Leia said.

"I am, a little. What are we supposed to do with Pooja?"

"Bring her to our parents, and Kyleeza and Zaron," said Luke, resting his hand on Mara's leg. He studied Han again.

Leia noticed it. "Well, Han will be useful."

"Will he?" Luke asked.

"Yes," his sister insisted. "What if Zaron talked to Rafael after he met Han at the party?"

"It doesn't matter if he did," Mara pointed out. "Rafael won't be expecting to see someone with Leia."


	30. Chapter Thirty

**Chapter Thirty**

It was night when Rafael felt Leia, Mara, and Luke arrive. He and Pooja were sitting in the bedroom in the back of their ship. Pooja was laying down on the couch, with her head resting near his lap. He had lightly stroked her cheek a few times.

The other Sith were very far away, but he still mentioned it to Pooja anyway. She was nervous at first, guessing that now he was going to realize how foolish he was acting, and decide to take her to them now.

"What are you going to do?" she asked. "We're not going to leave again, are we?"

Rafael looked at her. "You don't want to leave?"

"I'm confused. Sith aren't supposed to be scared of anyone, especially if you are friends, like you said." Pooja sat up. "Why did we even leave Dantooine when Ryoo and the others came there?"

"You are not ready to deal with them yet."

"What do you mean?"

"We are not going anywhere. We will wait for them to come here," Rafael said, not answering the question.

Pooja looked at him sadly. She sighed. "I knew you would not seriously like me."

"I would like to talk with Lord Vader or Lady Amidala. They will not want to waste someone with as much potential as you."

"What about Leia?"

Rafael was quiet for a second before replying. Now that he felt her presence here, even if she was not anywhere near them, his interest in Pooja almost faded. Even if Leia still thought she did not want him, that would definately change when she actually saw him.

Pooja stared at him for a moment, understanding that he was not very distracted by her anymore. She felt very lonely. She had been stupid enough to think that he really wanted her. If she had tried to escape while they were still on Dantooine, then she, Obi-Wan, Hallie, and Ryoo could have dealt with him then. He most likely couldn't take on four Jedi at once.

Hallie and Obi-Wan would still be disappointed with Pooja - and Ryoo, too, for hiding her marriage - but at least they would be together again. Besides, they would probably forgive them eventually. Pooja realized how badly she had over-reacted. Her sister had been afraid of telling their teachers about her marriage. She needed Pooja's support.

"...waiting, I would like to ask you about your parents," Rafael was saying.

"What? I wasn't listening," Pooja said, without apologizing. She no longer cared if she was polite to him or not.

"While we are waiting for my friends, I would like to ask you about your parents. Who are they?"

"If they're your friends, why don't we just go to them on our own, instead of waiting for them? Are you scared?"

"You have been cooperating so well, Pooja," said Rafael. "Do not ruin it. I will not ask you again."

Pooja gave in. "Sola and Darred Naberrie. Hallie told Ryoo and I that they agreed to give us up, so that we could be trained. That's all that we know."

Her eyes were wet now, but Rafael knew she was not crying about her parents. He said nothing, and let her get up and go to the front of the ship.

* * *

During the rest of the ride, Leia had tried to do a lot of talking, so that her brother and Mara would not have a chance to scrutinize and question Han. Han was in a better mood. He was still uneasy around them, but hid it well. 

She had noticed that he was not nearly as bothered by her as he was by the others. She was also starting to like hearing him call her by her name. In fact, she was thinking of giving him permission to do it all the time.

Their shuttle had landed at the Imperial base on Tattooine, which was just outside of Mos Eisley. From there, it would probably take less than half-an-hour to walk to the spaceport.

Walking there was somewhat awkward. Han had to hold onto Leia so that she could also conceal his presence. She slid her arm inside his, but neither of them said anything, since Luke and Mara were here.

Leia did glance up at Han once or twice, when she thought that her brother and Mara were not paying attention. He did not know what to say, so he remained quiet and listened to them discuss what to do about Rafael and Pooja.

"I still think I should go to them by myself," Leia said.

"No," Mara insisted.

"What if they leave again before we get there?"

"Then they must really be together, or else Rafael would have come back on his own by now."

"I guess," Leia said, sounding more bored than sad. Han was starting to believe that this was just an annoying chore for her. She did not seem to be very interested in returning to Rafael.

"So, are we going to go there tonight?" Mara asked.

"Tomorrow," Luke replied, "or the day after. We will give them a chance to come to us first."

"Good," said Leia. "Where are we staying tonight?"

"My apartment is here," Han told her.

"Alright." Mara looked up at Luke. "Do you mind? I don't feel like going to a hotel."

"Very well," he replied.

Leia smiled. "Thank you, Han."

"Of course," he said, although he was not thrilled about having Luke and Mara as guests.

* * *

His apartment area at the back of his private hangar had two bedrooms. The one he didn't use was empty except for a bed and a couch, but Leia did not seem to mind. The couch in Han's room was new and more comfortable, but Luke was definately not going to let his sister stay in there. 

Overall, Leia was impressed with how neat and clean the bedrooms, kitchen, and bathroom were.

"Thank you again, Han," she said as she was looking around the kitchen.

She hesitated for a moment, then turned and went into the other bedroom with Mara and Luke.


	31. Chapter ThirtyOne

Author's note: Next chapter will be longer; I just wanted to go ahead and post this part, since I haven't updated in a week.

**Chapter Thirty-One**

When Han went out into the hangar area, early the next morning, Leia was there, talking on her comlink. She smiled at him. She was wearing the same black pants and long-sleeved red shirt she had on yesterday. She must not have brought a change of clothes with her, meaning that they probably weren't going to be here for several days. Han hoped not, at least. He did not really mind having her here - in fact, he had almost forgotten about Lando and his other friends that he was supposed to go to the pod race with - but he was not enjoying being watched by Luke and Mara constantly.

"Alright. I'll call you later," Leia said, then turned off her comlink. She looked at Han. "That was my mother. She wanted me to tell you hello."

_Great_, Han thought. "Good morning, Your Highness."

"I told you to call me by my name while we're here," she reminded him. "In fact, I want you to do that all the time."

"Can I ask why?"

Leia hesitated, a little embarassed, then said, "Because you do what I tell you, unless you're complaining about working for me?"

"Of course not. Sorry."

"I am, too. I don't feel like meeting Rafael," Leia admitted. "You probably don't like us using you to make him angry, but it was mostly my parents' idea. I don't really like it."

"I understand," said Han.

"Thank you." Leia stood on her toes and quickly kissed his cheek.

He stared at her for a second, making her feel embarassed again. He had completely forgotten his friends now. Helping Leia deal with Rafael did not seem to be such a horrible task. Han guessed that maybe Rafael needed to learn a lesson.

"Will you go out and get me a hot tea? And one for Mara?" Leia asked him.

"Yes," he answered. He paused. "Do you want to come with me?"

"Okay."

* * *

This time, when Leia hid their presence, she held Han's hand. He was uneasy at first, and looked behind a couple of times to see if Mara and Luke were following them.

While they walked, Leia talked to him about the Force. He listened and even asked her several questions, which she answered without seeming annoyed. They walked past a café and a drink stand, without going to either. Han doubted that she had really wanted a hot tea, but he did not mind. As they talked, he kept getting the strong feeling that she was lonely.

Finally, he tried asking, "Why aren't you and Rafael engaged anymore?"

He expected her to yell at him for that, since it was none of his business, but she did not seem angry at all. In fact, she seemed to be glad to have someone to talk to. Han was also getting the idea that she did not have many friends.

"My father cancelled the wedding," she told him.

"You don't seem very mad about it," he commented, then noticed that that didn't sound very polite. "I mean..."

"I didn't want to marry him," Leia interrupted. "Anyway, my father told Rafael's parents that he wanted me to focus on the rest of my training."

"Maybe he felt bad - or maybe he doesn't like Rafael that much."

"I don't know. I think he would like for me to marry another Sith, or someone Force-sensitive that Luke or I could teach."

Han thought for a second. "But..."

"What?"

"Just wondering," Han continued, "if your children will be Force-strong, because they get it from you, why does it matter if you marry someone who _isn't_ Force-strong?"

Leia was quiet for a moment, as if she had never considered that before. "I don't know. I've never asked my parents about it."

Neither of them said anything until they saw another drink bar. Leia asked Han to go to it. Now he could guess why she wanted to get the drinks - when she told her brother and Mara that they had gone out to get tea, it would not really be a lie, so they would not sense any dishonesty. But Han knew they would sense that something else was going on.

As soon as he paid for the drinks, Leia took his arm to hide his presence again, and they began walking back to the hangar.


	32. Chapter ThirtyTwo

**Chapter Thirty-Two**

When they returned to the hangar, Mara and Luke were waiting outside the apartment area. Han tried to gently let go of Leia's hand, but she held onto him.

He felt the cold, suspicious glare that Mara gave him, but not even she and Luke were bothering him right now. During the walk back here, he had thought of how Leia had responded to his question about marrying someone who wasn't Force-strong - as if she would never think of being with someone who didn't have the potential to become a Sith.

Han could not believe how disappointed he felt. He admitted that he liked her a little, even though did not personally know her well, outside of being her assistant.

"Welcome back," Mara said, still looking at Han.

Leia gave her sister-in-law one of the hot drinks. "I wanted tea, and I thought I'd get you one."

"Thank you."

"We should go," Luke said.

"Han, can we use one of those?" Leia pointed to three speeders that parked on the other side of the hangar area.

"Yeah. They're mine," he answered.

Mara gave him a small smile that would probably look genuinely polite to anyone else, but he could see past it. She and Luke knew that he could, too. At least they did not seem to think that he was stupid. If there was a chance that he could have Leia, he would definately have to impress them.

* * *

Darth Vader and Darth Amidala were sitting together in the living room when Amidala's comlink, sitting on the table in front of the couch started beeping. At first, she thought of ignoring it, but then remembered that it could be one of the twins. She held out her hand and mentally reached for it.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Pad-- Amidala?" Jobal replied.

"Mother," she said quietly, glancing at Vader. "Are you alright?"

"Yes."

"You usually don't call me, unless I tell you to."

Jobal hesitated for a moment. "You said you wanted to have dinner again soon..."

"I can't believe you're actually inviting me," Amidala said, a little coldly.

"We...Ruwee and I would like to see the twins and Mara."

"Oh." Amidala looked at Vader again. "Sure, in a few days. They are taking care of something right now."

"Alright. Thank you."

Amidala turned off her comlink without responding.

* * *

Han let Luke pilot the speeder. The two of them sat in the front, with Leia and Mara in the back. For a while, Han was quiet, and listened to the others discuss Pooja and Rafael more. Luke asked him a couple of questions about the speeder, but did not really become more friendly.

They had been riding for almost two hours later when Leia suddenly let out a heavy sigh. Luke slowed the speeder, then finally stopped it.

"They left," Mara told Han.

"Rafael and Pooja?" he asked, guessing that they had sensed it.

"Yes," Leia muttered. "What are we going to do?"

"Go back to Naboo," Luke said.

"I thought their ship had a tracking device on it," Han said carefully. He did not like being in a speeder with three annoyed Sith.

"It does," Leia replied, "but we need to wait for them to land somewhere. We might as well go back to Naboo. Or I could call Daddy."

_Great_, Han thought.


	33. Chapter ThirtyThree

Madame Nabberrie: Anakin says that in You And I 1. 

**Chapter Thirty-Three**

Pooja had half-expected Rafael to leave again. Once she finally met Darth Vader and Darth Amidala, she was definately going to emphasize that it was Rafael's decision to keep running constantly. She was even considering trying to escape, then turning herself in.

"Where are we going now?" she asked, sitting down in one of the cockpit's seats again.

"Imperial City," said Rafael. "To see my parents."

"I thought you wanted to see Leia. Why couldn't you wait a few more hours for her to get to us?"

"I have a feeling about her. Something is happening."

"I didn't think you were really close enough to her to sense something like that," Pooja said, sounding a little bitter. She doubted that she could ever come close to liking Rafael again, after the way his interest in her had suddenly faded when Leia arrived on Tattooine.

He did not reply. She wondered if she had pointed out that maybe he was not as close with Leia as he had thought. Truthfully, though, Pooja barely cared about Rafael's problems with the princess anymore. She either wanted to escape or be taken to the other Sith without more delays.

"You know," she added, "I should call Lord Vader and ask him to come get me. I could just explain that you're trying to use me to make his daughter jealous and depressed, so you haven't been able to turn me in yet."

She thought Rafael would kill her for saying something like that, but he was calm.

"You can tell him soon," he replied, "after you meet my parents."

"Good," Pooja said, even though she was a little nervous now. "I have lots of things to tell them."

* * *

Leia used Han's holograph pad and contacted Vader, who told them to forget Rafael and Pooja for now and return to Naboo. So, they went back to Tattooine's Imperial base and left. Han was relieved. He wanted to get back to the _Millenium Falcon_, then leave Naboo, maybe go back to his apartment or do something with his friends, since he had completely forgotten about the pod race they were supposed to go to.

His relief disappeared when Leia, sitting down beside him in the Imperial shuttle, asked, "Can you stay on Naboo for the next few days?"

"Of course," he said.

She seemed a little sad. He was confused at first, then realized that she was sensing his mood - she knew that he didn't really want to stay. But she said nothing.

Mara leaned against Luke a little. She thought of one time when he had been meeting with her and two other spies. As the others were leaving, he told her to stay. She had been terrified, since she was the one who had lost a bounty hunter she had been tracking. She was surprised when Luke wanted her to go to a base opening on Yavin Three with him.

"Oh," Leia said, looking at Mara and Luke, "Daddy said that he and Mom want to talk to us when we get home."

"Did he say what it was about?" Mara asked, deliberately trying to make Han feel left out. She was doing him a favor by being mean to him. Leia would certainly realize that she needed somebody who was better, and hopefully Force-sensitive.

"Pooja," Leia said.

"And Rafael?"

"No. He just said Pooja."

* * *

Ryoo knocked on the door of Obi-Wan and Hallie's hotel room, which was beside hers and Kev's. They were now staying on Yavin Six - mostly to hide from the Sith, not to find Pooja. Hallie had suggested that until they had a definite clue about where Rafael had taken Pooja, it was best that they not travel around and risk being caught by one of the other Sith. That had frustrated Ryoo.

As soon as Hallie opened the door, she instantly said, "I just wanted to tell you that Kev and I are leaving. We're going to his - our - new apartment."

"What? Ryoo, we shouldn't separate," Hallie replied. "And let's not discuss this in the hallway. Come inside."

"We should be looking for Pooja."

"Don't tell me that you and Kev are going to look for her on your own," Hallie said, whispering now.

Kev came out into the hall, but didn't interrupt them.

"Maybe," Ryoo whispered back, "but for now, we're going to our new apartment. I'm not telling you where it is yet, and don't try to follow us."

Hallie sighed. "Will you at least contact us when you get there, so we know you arrived safely?"

"Of course not. I'm not going to let you trace the signal. Now, we're going."

"Good night," Kev said. He did not sound sarcastic, but Hallie knew that he wanted to get away from her, since he probably did not like her very much. She deserved it. She admitted that she and Obi-Wan had not been very warm toward him so far.

Ryoo went over to him, without saying anything else to Hallie, and took his hand. They went to the doors at the end of the hallway and left.

* * *

It was evening when Leia came home with Mara and Luke. Leia wished she had invited Han, but she knew he would not have really wanted to come, and she still did not know what her parents were going to think about her wanting to be with him.

She briefly forgot that problem when her mother talked with her, Mara, and Luke about Ryoo and Pooja. The four of them sat inside the living room while waiting for Vader to return from the Naboo base. Leia's thoughts drifted to Han once or twice, wondering where he was staying. She considered calling him later.

"They're our cousins?" she asked when she heard, thinking of when she attacked Pooja on Naboo. She doubted that either of the Naberrie sisters knew.

"Yes," Amidala answered. "My older sister's daughters."

"Why aren't they with her?" Luke asked.

"We believe that she and Darred gave them to Obi-Wan and Hallie to train."

"Or stole them," Mara suggested.

"Jedi wouldn't do that," Leia said.

"They might if they were desperate enough."

"That is true," Amidala agreed. "Of course, we would like to try to turn them, since they are our family."


	34. Chapter ThirtyFour

J.E.A.R.K. Potter - Leia wasn't defending the Jedi, just pointing out that that's not something they usually do. 

**Chapter Thirty-Four**

After Luke and Mara went home, Leia went to her room. She sat down on her bed and closed her eyes, trying to mentally connect with Pooja. It didn't work. She wasn't very familiar with her cousin - yet - and even if Pooja felt Leia trying to reach her, she probably would not answer.

Leiawanted to call Han, but decided to leave him alone for now. She shouldn't have told him to stay here on Naboo for a few days. She was about to pick up her comlink from the table beside her bed, but then there was a buzz from her door.

Mentally, she pressed the OPEN button. Her mother came inside.

"Can I talk to you?" Amidala asked. She sat down on the couch.

"Did you and Daddy find someone else for me to marry?" Leia replied.

Amidala sighed. "Please don't act that way, sweetheart. We set you up with Rafael because we thought he was right for you, and then we realized that he was really not, so we cancelled the wedding."

"I just hope that you learned something," said Leia.

"What do you mean?"

"That I should be allowed to choose someone on my own. I'm twenty years old."

"Han?" Amidala asked.

"Whoever I'm in love with," Leia said. She quickly changed the subject. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

"Your trip to Tattooine. I want to tell you, again, that your father and I aren't angry with you. We aren't going to concern ourselves with Rafael right now."

Leia nodded. She was quiet for a moment, then asked, "Mom, Mara was very weak in the Force when Luke first married her, remember?"

"Yes," Amidala answered, "but she had enough potential to be trained. Now, she is as powerful as you or your brother, I would say. Why?"

"And if I happened to marry someone who _doesn't_ have much potential, my children would still inherit it from me," Leia continued.

"What are you getting at?"

"Nothing, really. Han asked me about it - I told him a little about the Force - and I wasn't sure what to say."

"Why were you teaching him about the Force?"

Leia had already thought of an excuse for that. "He's my servant. He should know about some of the powers I have."

Amidala was about to reply, but then they heard the front door open. They both got up and went to the living room. Leia was disappointed that her mother had not been as understanding as she had hoped, but she could try to talk to Amidala about Han again later. She would have much more luck than she would with her father.

"Hello," she said to Vader. "Mom told us about Ryoo and Pooja."

"Yes," Amidala added, hugging her husband tightly, as if he had been away for a week.

Watching them made Leia feel lonely. She reconsidered calling Han. Even if he wanted to see her, though, she still did not know how she was going to talk to her father.

Vader, sensing how depressed she suddenly was, asked, "What is it?"

"Does anyone want a drink?" she tried, hoping he would decide to leave her alone for now.

"Tell me," he said, letting go of Amidala.

Leia went over to him and hugged him, still not saying anything. He held her, and she didn't sense that he was very annoyed, but she knew that he would mention this later. She might as well get it over with now.

"Han," she said quietly.

"What did he do?" Vader asked, stroking her hair.

"Leia misses him," said Amidala, mostly trying to help. She felt horrible for upsetting her daughter more.

"I'm tired. I'm going to go to bed," Leia told them.

They let her go to her room without stopping her.

* * *

Sorry for the short chapter, the next one will be much longer. 


	35. Chapter ThirtyFive

**Chapter Thirty-Five**

Pooja was surprised when Rafael took her right to his house. Then again, if he or one of the other Sith were going to kill her anyway, it didn't matter if she knew where he lived.

On the way to Imperial City, she had mostly ignored him. She felt more upset than angry at him. By now, she barely even thought about Obi-Wan or Hallie, and she still felt betrayed by Ryoo hiding her marriage for six years. For now, Pooja would enjoy having a chance to see Leia crush Rafael's hopes.

She had changed clothes before they left the ship, and was now wearing a light yellow sweater with white pants. She wanted to look nice, in case she had a chance to meet Leia. Even though the princess had attacked her, Pooja decided that she was more on Leia's side than on Rafael's.

"My parents should be here shortly," Rafael told her as they entered his bedroom.

She looked at the picture of him and Leia, sitting by the pond on Alderaan, that was beside the door. Just for a second, she felt sorry for him, realizing how desperate he was to have the princess back. But she quickly remembered how he had briefly toyed with her, then lost interest in her as soon as he felt Leia's presence on Tattooine.

"I will leave you here," he said, interrupting her thoughts.

She started to say something sarcastic, but decided to be quiet. She just nodded.

He punched in a code on the panel of buttons beside the door. The codes for locking the door and unlocking it were not the same, so he did not care if Pooja watched. He looked at her for a moment, then left before the door closed automatically.

Once he was gone, Pooja was about to let herself cry, but then she realized that she had a chance to look around the room before Rafael came back. She couldn't leave - the room did not have any windows, and the door was locked. But since Rafael had not been here in a few days, he hadn't had time to hide anything that Pooja might be able to use.

The room was big; her and Ryoo's old apartment on Cloud City could fit inside it. She walked over to the couch in front of the large viewing screen.

On a small table, beside one end of the couch, was a framed picture of Leia standing near the edge of a pool, wearing a red bikini. Pooja wondered if Darth Vader knew that Rafael had the picture. She briefly thought of taking it, so that she could at least get Rafael into trouble before the Sith dealt with her. But she probably couldn't hide it well underneath her sweater.

Next, she went over to the bed. There was a small nightstand on either side, each of which had two drawers. Pooja looked through all of them, but found nothing except a few old tabloid magazines that all mentioned Leia and Rafael's engagement.

There were two other doors in the room, and the open entrance to the walk-in closet. Pooja opened one of the doors, which was the bathroom. She looked around it, not finding anything useful, then went to the door on the other side of the room.

She opened it, seeing that it was an extra closet, only it was empty - except for a holograph transmission pad. She smiled when she realized it was very similar to one that Ryoo had been thinking about buying, only they hadn't had enough money with them.

Pooja closed the door behind her, and looked at a panel of buttons that was on one side of the square transmission pad. She remembered a clerk at the store showing her and Ryoo a button that would reconnect with the most recent person you had made contact with.

She stepped onto the pad and reached down and pressed the ON button, waited a moment, then pressed the button to reconnect. She didn't really want to talk to one of the other Sith, but if Leia happened to answer, Pooja would rather be stuck with her than with Rafael.

* * *

Leia was sitting on her couch, watching a holomovie, when she heard a buzz from her holograph pad, which was in one corner of her room. It had to be Rafael trying to contact her - Mara or Luke would just call her comlink.

She wanted to ignore it, but it was likely that he might tell her something useful, maybe even reveal where he and Pooja were. Of course, she would be cautious, since she couldn't sense lies when talking to someone through a holograph connection.

She wasn't really surprised when Pooja's image appeared in front of her, since she expected Rafael to be using the girl to make her jealous.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"I'm at Rafael's house..." Pooja started.

"Tell him that I don't care."

"He isn't here. Neither are his parents."

"Why would he leave you by yourself?" Leia asked.

"I don't know, but he'll probably be back soon. I doubt he'd leave me here by myself for very long," Pooja said. "I know that we can't sense dishonesty over a holograph connection, but..."

"That's why I'm not going to believe anything you say," Leia interrupted. She stepped off of her pad, making her image disappear on Pooja's side, then mentally pressed the pad's OFF button.

* * *

Pooja sighed, almost wishing that Amidala or Vader had answered instead - but she couldn't blame Leia for not trusting her. Quickly, she turned the transmission pad off and left the closet, not wanting Rafael to suddenly come back and catch her using it.

She went back to the couch and sat down, then stretched out, realizing how tired she was. In case Rafael wasn't going to be back soon, she might as well take a nap. In a few minutes, she was asleep.


	36. Chapter ThirtySix

**Chapter Thirty-Six**

Kyleeza Aryies woke Pooja up by gently nudging her shoulder. Before she opened her eyes, Pooja first thought, for some reason, that it was Hallie or Ryoo.

When she saw that it was Kyleeza, she felt crushed, and suddenly realized how badly she wanted to be with her teachers, Ryoo, and even Kev - she had never disliked him at all. But she doubted that any of them were going to find her anytime soon. It was possible that they thought she _wanted_ to be with Rafael. She couldn't really blame them, since she had briefly been interested in him.

"Hello," she told Kyleeza as she sat up. Looking around, she saw that only the two of them were in the room, and she remembered that she still did not have her lightsaber.

"Are you well?" the Sith Lady asked.

"Of course not. And why do you care?"

"Lord Vader might want you to be brought to him unharmed."

"At least I'll finally get to see him. Your son hides whenever another Sith gets close," Pooja replied. "You must be very proud."

"He made one foolish mistake, but he came to his senses. It happens," Kyleeza told her. "But I am not here to have a discussion with you."

Pooja nodded, deciding to be polite for now, at least until she had an opportunity to escape. She doubted that any of the Sith were going to leave her by herself.

"What are you going to do with me?" she asked in a softer, more respectful tone.

"Lady Amidala just called my comlink and mentioned you contacting Leia earlier..." Kyleeza said, pausing for a moment. "I suppose that's Rafael's fault. He left in a hurry and didn't think of you trying to use his holograph pad."

"Where did he go?"

Kyleeza ignored the question. "Lady Amidala and Lord Vader are coming here tomorrow."

Pooja just nodded again. The door to the room open, and Rafael came in. She barely looked at him.

* * *

Rafael took her to the main Imperial base. She didn't say a word to him. At first, she was surprised that he was leaving her there for the night. She could hide her presence and just walk out.

But of course, he wasn't going to let her do that. He took her to a cell himself. Later, a Toydarian doctor came in and gave Pooja some kind of nutritional drink. Mind tricks wouldn't work on him. Even if they would, Pooja doubted that she would have used one. She wouldn't have wanted to get him into trouble by escaping. He was genuinely nice. He offered to bring her another drink if she wanted, but she said no.

Around midnight - she had a chronowatch on that she had bought while she was shopping on Dantooine, while he and Rafael were staying in the hotel - she felt tired, and easily fell asleep on the uncomfortable bench in the corner of the cell.

* * *

She woke up after just a few hours, before five-thirty. She meditated, but it didn't help her relax. A couple of hours later, the same doctor came back and brought her another drink.

It was almost noon when Leia entered the cell. Pooja was a little surprised to see her. She had sensed three presences earlier that felt a little familiar, but hadn't been able to tell which of the Sith they were.

"Kyleeza...I mean, Lady Kyleeza told me that your parents were coming," she said.

"They are here, but my mother thought you might feel more comfortable talking to me," Leia replied. She came over to the bench and sat down near the other end.

"I'm not telling you anything. I have no idea where Obi-Wan or Hallie or Ryoo might be, if they're actually looking for me..."

"I'm sure they have been," Leia said, as if she were trying to be comforting.

"How do you know? Have you run into them?" asked Pooja.

"No," the princess answered, "but don't worry about them. They aren't important."

"Are you saying that I am?"

"Yes," Leia said. "Mara and I were almost arguing with Luke and my parents last night. We think you should be given a chance."

"What? I don't want a chance," Pooja replied. "I would never turn to the Dark Side."

Leia smiled faintly. "I understand. I would probably say the same thing, too, if I were you. But, a month from now - sooner, I bet - you'll be greatful to me and Mara. I practically begged my father..."

"You don't understand anything," Pooja interrupted. She sighed. "I haven't sensed any dishonesty, so I wonder why you and Mara would be interested in turning me."

Leia was quiet. She wanted to wait until Pooja decided to turn before telling her that they were cousins.

After a moment, the Jedi asked, "What does Rafael think?"

"He will try to convince you to join us." Leia stood up. "Please think about it. Mara and I won't be nice for very long."

She started to walk back to the cell's door, but Pooja asked, "Leia?"

"Yes?"

"Can I talk with both of you - and Rafael and Luke?"


	37. Chapter ThirtySeven

**Chapter Thirty-Seven**

During the next week, Leia only contacted Han twice, to make him watch a couple of smugglers that she wasn't even concerned with. She wanted to see him again, but since she had just begged her father to give her and Mara a chance with Pooja, she decided to wait before trying to mention Han.

Pooja had been staying at Zaron, Kyleeza, and Rafael's house for now, and slowly became used to the fact that Darth Amidala was her aunt. She spent most of the days with Rafael. He took her everywhere with him. None of the Sith seemed to trust her to be by herself yet, which she understood.

That evening, a week after Pooja had been captured, Leia's holograph pad buzzed. She guessed that it was Han before she answered it, even though she didn't know why he would want to contact her - he had already reported on the two smugglers she had told him to watch, and she had not given him anything else to do.

She glanced at her bedroom door to make sure it was completely closed, then went to the holograph pad. She smiled when she saw that it _was_ Han.

"Your Highness," he said. He forgot to bow, but Leia didn't care.

"I am glad to see you," she told him, then felt slightly embarassed. "What do you want?"

Han guessed that no one else, outside of his view, was watching, or else she wouldn't have said something like that.

"One of my friends just moved out of his apartment," he said, "and I think that Ryoo and Kev have moved into it. I've seen them there twice, and I saw Kev in one of the parts stores I go to."

"Did you say anything to him?"

"No."

Leia thought for a moment. "I want you to come to Naboo for a few days. If they happen to know that you work for me, then I do not want them to see you."

"Yes, Your Highness."

* * *

Sorry for the very short chapter, I haven't updated in a week, so I wanted to post something. 


	38. Chapter ThirtyEight

**Chapter Thirty-Eight**

Han arrived on Naboo the next morning. He contacted Leia to tell her that he was here - she had told him to let her know, no matter what time he got here. She could not go see him, though, since the Sith were meeting at Kyleeza and Zaron's vacation house here. Mara had suggested having a gathering so that Pooja could talk to everyone more.

"I should have invited Han," Leia said quietly, mostly to herself. She was sitting in the back seat of Mara and Luke's speeder. It took a little less than two hours to reach the Aryies's vacation house.

"Do you think he likes the idea of being around Sith all the time?" Mara asked.

Leia knew that her sister-in-law had made a good point, but she said nothing.

* * *

While waiting for the others to arrive, Rafael and Pooja went outside, behind the house. Rafael had a blaster didn't have a KILL setting, only STUN. He shot at Pooja several times, to watch her block the bolts as they came at her. She stopped all of them. Not one went past her.

"Very good," Rafael told her. As she walked over to him, he tried to surprise her by shooting at her two more times, but she stopped those bolts.

"Thank you," she replied quietly. She was wearing a long, flowy red skirt and a sleeveless red top, another one of the outfits she had bought while she and Rafael were staying on Dantooine.

"Is something bothering you?"

"I was thinking about how I would like to live here again one day," Pooja said, not really answering the question. "Ryoo and I never moved here, because we knew that Hallie and Obi-Wan would be angry if they found out. They would probably think there are too many connections to our old lives that would distract us."

"I am buying a house here soon," Rafael hinted.

Pooja did not have to think of a way to reply to that, since they heard a speeder approaching.

* * *

Amidala and Vader did not come, they were at the Naboo Imperial base. Pooja was relieved, but she did not feel any less nervous. She wasn't even comfortable around Rafael yet. She decided to try to stay close to Leia.

"Why don't we go sit down?" her cousin suggested to her and Mara.

"Okay," Pooja said.

She followed them into the smaller sitting room that was connected to the living room. Kyleeza joined them. Rafael, Luke, and Zaron did not - Mara had suggested earlier that Pooja might be more comfortable if she had some time with the other women.

"Have you and Ryoo ever tried to learn anything about your family?" Mara asked as she sat down on one of the light yellow couches.

"No," Pooja answered, sitting beside Leia.

"Do you have any interest in them?" Kyleeza asked.

"I don't know. Am I supposed to?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I've wondered about that sometimes," Pooja explained. "I am supposed to be caring, since I am - _was_ - a Jedi, but I'm not supposed to have any interest in my family, or get married, like Ryoo and Kev secretly did..."

"Do you think Hallie and Obi-Wan will ban her from the Jedi Order...well, group, I should say?" asked Leia.

"Perhaps," her cousin said, "if they can find someone new to train. They may decide that they like it, since Ryoo might want to train her children. They've probably thought that we might want to get married one day. I think they knew about my first boyfriend."

"You don't have to worry about hiding relationships anymore," Mara said.


	39. Chapter ThirtyNine

**Chapter Thirty-Nine**

The next afternoon, Han went to the Imperial base on Naboo. Leia had told him to meet her outside of the hall of prisoner cells. He reached the hall and entered it without any objection from the officer and two Stormtroopers that were standing at the entrance. They knew that he was Leia's assisstant.

She wasn't there yet, which was unusual. He walked to the end of the hall and waited. After a few seconds, someone suddenly grabbed his wrist.

"Hey..." he said. It was Leia. "Where did you come from?"

"I'm concealing my presence," she said. "You're invisible right now, too, because I'm touching you."

"No one can see us?"

"Other Force-users can, but there aren't any here," Leia answered. "Don't let go of me. I want to talk to you privately."

"Alright," Han said. Then he added, "My Lady."

She was very nervous, and was trying not to show it. She was glad that her father and Luke weren't here. If they saw how shy she was now, she would be embarassed.

"I want to tell you something," she said. "Remember the last smuggler that I told you to watch - the last two, actually?"

"Yes."

"They really weren't a concern to me at all. I only told you to watch them because I wanted an excuse to talk to you."

"So you want me to stop watching them?"

"Yes." Leia paused. "I'm...interested in you...do you know what I'm saying?"

For a moment, Han liked seeing that she was nervous. Even though she was a Sith, she was acting like any other girl who was trying to talk to a man that she liked.

"Are you gonna make me date you or something?" he asked, not worrying about sounding rude.

"No," she said. She let go of his wrist, then held onto his hand. "I am giving you a choice. If you don't like me, I will not be angry, and Luke and my father will not come after you."

"What will they do if we are together?" Han asked. "I don't think they would approve of you being with me."

"I talked to my parents about it last night," Leia replied. "You still aren't the first person that my father would want me to marry, but he does like the fact that you are an Imperial spy. I won't have to spend time trying to make someone else accept me and join the Empire."

Han leaned down a little and kissed her forehead. She smiled and hugged him.

- The End -

Sorry for the short, crappy ending. I just didn't want to leave this story unfinished. Thanks for all of the reviews.


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